REESE  LIBRARY  / 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Class 


THE   RETURN   TO   THE   LAND 


THE    RETURN    TO 
THE    LAND 


BY 


SENATOR   JULES   MELINE 

LEADER    OF    THE    MODERATE    REPUBLICANS    IN    FRANCE  J    FORMER    MINISTER 
OF    AGRICULTURE  ;    MINISTER    OF    COMMERCE  J    PREMIER 


WITH    A    PREFACE    BY 

JUSTIN  MCCARTHY 


NEW  YORK 
E.  P.  BUTTON   AND   COMPANY 

31    WEST  TWENTY-THIRD  STREET 
1907 


PREFACE 

THIS  book  seems  to  me  destined  to  make  a 
deep  mark  upon  the  age.  Senator  Jules  Meline, 
leader  of  the  Moderate  Republicans  in  France, 
was  Minister  of  Agriculture  in  the  Cabinet  of 
Jules  Ferry  from  1883  to  1885;  was  elected 
President  of  the  representative  chamber  of 
France  in  1889;  and  in  1896  became  Prime 
Minister — an  office  which  he  resigned  not  long 
after,  having  found  probably  that  his  political 
views  were  not  radical  enough  for  the  public 
opinion  of  the  country.  The  book  is  remarkable 
in  every  sense.  With  all  its  practical  teaching, 
with  its  minute  and  careful  instruction  on  manu- 
facturing and  industrial  questions,  there  is  not  a 
dull  page  in  it  from  first  to  last.  M.  Meline  has 
much  of  the  feeling  of  the  poet  as  well  as  the 
reasoning  power  of  the  practical  and  the  scien- 
tific teacher.  Even  where  the  reader  may  not 
accept  all  the  principles  of  political  economy  on 
which  M.  Meline  founds  many  parts  of  his  case, 
that  reader,  if  he  have  an  appreciative  mind, 
cannot  fail  to  admire  the  sincerity,  the  power, 

v 

166144 


Preface 

and  the  persuasiveness  of  the  author.  The  great 
object  of  the  book  is  to  convince  the  world  that 
the  return  to  the  land,  and  to  the  work  which 
the  land  still  offers  in  all  or  most  countries,  is 
now  the  nearest  and  the  surest  means  for  the 
mitigation  or  the  removal  of  the  troubles  which 
have  come  on  the  working  populations  every- 
where, and  that  the  present  is  the  appropriate 
time  for  the  beginning  of  such  a  movement. 

In  his  opening  chapter  the  author  tells  us 
that  the  most  remarkable  feature  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  is  the  immense  development  of 
the  manufacturing  industries.  "  Manufacture 
to-day,"  M.  Meline  justly  declares,  "is  as  different 
from  what  it  was  a  hundred  years  ago  as  are 
our  social  institutions  from  those  of  the  Middle 
Ages."  Within  less  than  half  a  century  this 
great  change  lias  taken  place,  and  M.  Meline 
says  that  the  change  was  inevitable  "  from  the 
moment  when  science  made  its  way  upon  the 
stage  of  primitive  industry,  ever  turning  until 
then  in  the  same  circle,  ever  running  in  the 
same  grooves."  The  limits  of  production  were 
naturally  and  inevitably  fixed  according  to  the 
number  of  men  and  women  able  to  give  manual 
labour  enough  in  each  particular  region  for  the 
supply  of  the  products  which  it  required.  The 
author  follows  out  the  course  of  this  world-wide 

vi 


Preface 

change,  or  rather  new  development,  in  a  series 
of  descriptions  which  are  no  less  vivid  than 
careful  and  accurate.  The  reader  who  begins 
this  volume  with  nothing  more  than  a  creditable 
desire  to  learn  something  about  the  development 
of  manufacturing  industry  here,  there,  and  every- 
where, soon  finds  himself  absorbed  in  M.  Meline's 
exposition  as  much  as  if  he  were  reading  a  story 
of  magic  from  the  "Thousand  and  One  Nights." 
Before  the  recent  stage  of  manufacturing  de- 
velopment which  belongs  to  our  own  time, 
England,  well  supplied  as  she  was  by  nature 
with  iron  and  with  coal,  should  have  become  the 
foremost  industrial  country  in  the  world,  and 
by  far  the  largest  exporter  of  manufactured 
products. 

I  may,  perhaps,  become  so  much  of  a  critic 
just  here  as  to  find  some  fault  with  M.  Meline. 
I  think  that  he  is  not  quite  fair  to  England  and 
her  governments  in  his  manner  of  dealing  with 
the  effects  of  the  famous  Treaty  of  Commerce 
between  this  country  and  France.  "  For  a 
moment,"  M.  Meline  says,  "it  seemed  as  though 
England  were  disposed  to  let  France  have  a 
share  in  her  prosperity ;  but  we  soon  discovered 
that  we  had  been  merely  the  cat's-paws  of  our 
more  powerful  neighbour,  and  that,  instead  of 
finding  our  way  into  her  field,  it  was  she  who 

vii 


Preface 

was  finding  her  way  more  and  more  into  ours." 
But  surely  it  is  evident  that  the  sole  reason  for 
this  result  is  found  in  the  fact  that  England  pro- 
duced manufactured  goods  which  France  desired 
to  have,  and  that  she  allowed  France  to  have 
them  on  the  easiest  terms.  Richard  Cobden,  who 
with  Michel  Chevalier,  the  great  French  econo- 
mist, began  and  conducted  the  negotiations  for 
the  Treaty  of  Commerce,  was  a  sincere  friend  of 
France  as  well  as  of  his  own  country,  and  as  the 
writer  of  this  review  personally  knows,  had  the 
interests  of  France  deeply  at  heart  while  he  was 
pressing  the  treaty  on  the  attention  of  his  own 
government.  Then  with  the  growth  of  scientific 
machinery,  came  the  desire  among  all  nations,  as 
M.  Meline  puts  it,  "  to  defend  themselves  against 
foreign  competition "  by  the  effort  to  manu- 
facture for  themselves  all  the  goods  which  they 
most  wanted,  and,  by  import  duties,  to  protect 
themselves  against  foreign  competition.  M. 
Meline  naturally  shows  himself  all  through  his 
volume  a  genuine  Protectionist,  but  I  feel  well 
assured  that  the  most  convinced  Free  Trader 
among  his  readers  will  not  feel  any  grudge 
against  him  merely  because  he  stands  by  his 
own  economical  principles,  inasmuch  as  through 
the  whole  of  his  work  his  evident  resolve  is  to 
state  with  absolute  fairness  the  facts  on  which 

viii 


Preface 

he  rests  his  case.  The  universal  passion  for  the 
development  of  native  industries,  and  its  suc- 
cessful working  almost  everywhere,  led  naturally 
and  inevitably  to  a  rivalry  in  exportations.  The 
countries  which  were  successful  in  this  work  of 
production  soon  found  that  they  could  make 
more  goods  than  were  needed  at  home,  and 
became  therefore  inspired  with  the  desire  to  find 
purchasers  in  foreign  markets. 

In  this  new  movement  the  United  States  led 
the  way.  The  States  fortified  themselves  with 
prohibitory  duties  against  other  nations,  while  at 
the  same  time  making  it  clear,  according  to  my 
judgment,  that  no  such  protective  ramparts  were 
needed.  The  United  States  have  lately  become 
by  far  the  largest  exporters  among  all  the 
countries  of  the  world ;  and  not  only  that,  but 
their  exports  approach  very  nearly  in  amount, 
and  in  some  industries  actually  exceed,  the 
combined  products  of  all  other  parts  of  our 
globe.  A  remarkable  fact  about  this  immense 
increase  in  American  productions  is  that  the 
United  States  have  not  sought  out  new  and 
unoccupied  markets,  but  have  "resolutely  at- 
tacked the  markets  of  Europe — those  which  were 
already  being  best  worked — those  of  France  and 
Germany  and  England  herself." 

M.  Meline  also  attaches  much  importance  to 
ix 


Preface 


the  sudden  and  rapid  development  of  Japan  in 
the  promotion  of  its  great  manufacturing  indus- 
tries. Japan  has  become  within  the  last  few 
years  almost  unrivalled  in  her  production  of  oil, 
of  cotton  goods,  and  of  silk.  The  astonishing 
and  utterly  unexpected  successes  Japan  made  as 
a  military  power  were,  M.  Meline  declares, 
"  merely  a  prelude  to  the  economic  conquests 
which  await  her,  and  on  which  she  counts ;  for 
she  had  this  in  view  when  she  undertook  the 
war,  and  her  struggle  with  Russia  was  but  a 
proof  of  her  intention  to  capture  the  Asiatic 
market,  and  to  remain  master  of  it."  A  new 
struggle  is  therefore  opening  up  among  the 
nations  of  the  world  as  regards  the  production 
of  manufactured  goods.  Such  a  contest  must, 
of  course,  lead  to  depressing  and  even  ruinous 
rivalries  here  and  there,  and  must,  M.  Meline 
believes,  bring  thinking  men  to  the  conviction 
that  there  is  some  other  element  of  national  pro- 
ductiveness which  must  be  called  into  develop- 
ment in  order  to  maintain  any  permanent 
remedy  for  increasing  poverty,  and  increasing 
and  heedless  emigration.  This  is  the  conclusion 
at  which  the  author  of  the  book  arrives,  and  the 
remedy  he  calls  for  is  that  return  to  the  land 
which  gives  a  title  to  his  volume.  M.  Meline  is 
an  enthusiast  about  this  return  to  the  land.  He 


Preface 

regards  the  occupation  and  cultivation  of  the 
land  in  every  country  as  one  of  the  healthiest 
and  most  hopeful  conditions  in  which  men  and 
women  can  be  brought  up.  He  lays  especial 
stress  on  the  improvement  which  can  be  wrought 
in  the  condition  of  working  women  everywhere 
by  the  cultivation  of  the  land  on  which  they  live. 
The  business  of  market  gardening  may  be  made 
not  merely  a  profitable  occupation  for  women, 
but  a  means  of  developing  their  intelligence, 
their  culture,  and  their  self-respect.  While 
much  of  the  mechanical  work  which  furnishes 
a  means  of  bare  livelihood  to  the  women  of  all 
our  populations  has  often  to  be  performed  under 
conditions  detrimental  alike  to  physical  health, 
and  to  mental  and  moral  development,  the  return 
to  the  land,  to  the  cultivation  of  market  gardens, 
to  the  bringing-up  of  flowers,  and  the  study  of 
plants,  would  render  woman  in  every  sense  a 
helpful  and  improving  companion  to  man.  We 
can  hardly  think  of  Hood's  melancholy  verses, 
"  The  Song  of  the  Shirt,"  as  likely  to  have  any 
illustration  to  be  found  in  woman's  labour  to 
cultivate  the  soil  on  which  her  husband  or  father 
was  working,  and  on  which  her  years  since 
childhood  have  been  spent. 

It  may  not,  perhaps,  be  altogether  inappro- 
priate here  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  which 

xi 


Preface 

M.  Meline  would  probably  have  invited  to  his 
aid,  if  he  happened  to  remember  it,  that  our 
familiar  word  "dairy"  was  originally  derived 
from  the  old  English  word  "  deye,"  which  merely 
signifies  a  maid,  and  which  came  with  slight 
alteration  to  be  used  as  a  term  of  endearment, 
and  thus  gave  us  the  growing  young  woman 
as  the  central  and  characteristic  figure  in  the 
industrial  arrangement  for  the  production  and 
the  sale  of  milk  and  butter  and  cheese.  Bacon 
says  that  "  dairies  being  well  housewifed  are 
exceeding  commodious,"  and,  again,  "  children 
in  dairy  countries  do  wax  more  tall  than 
where  they  feed  more  upon  bread  and  flesh." 
M.  Meline,  indeed,  gives  us  many  illustrations 
of  the  happy  contrast  between  the  condition  of 
women  who  have  always  been  employed  in  farm 
and  gardening  work,  and  that  of  those  who 
make  a  living  for  themselves,  or  help  to  make 
a  living  for  their  families,  through  their  toil 
with  the  indoor  work  of  great  cities.  This,  of 
course,  is  only  one  part  of  our  author's  case, 
but  he  dwells  upon  it,  and  illuminates  it  with 
artistic,  and  even  poetic,  expressiveness.  We 
all  must  admit  that  the  crowding  of  rural 
populations,  of  all  manner  of  populations,  into 
most  of  our  large  cities  and  towns  has  an 
especially  destructive  effect  upon  the  physical 

xii 


Preface 

health,  and  the  mental  and  moral  improvement 
of  women. 

In  our  own  islands  there  has  been  every- 
where, of  late  years,  a  clearly  expressed  anxiety 
for  the  accomplishment  of  the  return  to  the 
land,  and  a  general  agreement  that  such  a 
return  is  only  to  be  brought  about  by  a  course 
of  legislation,  which  shall  make  the  toiler  in 
fields  the  owner  of  the  piece  of  land  he  culti- 
vates. Conservative  governments,  as  well  as 
Liberal  governments,  have  shown  themselves 
anxious  to  introduce  legislation  with  such  an 
object.  The  time  has  happily  long  gone  by 
when  John  Stuart  Mill  justly  described  the  Irish 
cottier-tenant  as  one  of  the  few  men  \nho  could 
neither  benefit  by  his  own  industry,  nor  suffer 
by  his  own  improvidence.  The  description  was 
literally  correct  at  the  day  when  Mill  gave  it  to 
the  world.  The  only  result  which  the  Irish 
cottier-tenant  could  accomplish  for  himself  by 
the  improvement  of  his  farm,  was  to  bring  about 
an  increase  of  his  rent,  and  his  most  utter  im- 
providence could  do  no  worse  than  bring  him  to 
the  workhouse,  the  shelter  whither  his  industry 
would  be  just  as  likely  to  conduct  him  in  the 
end.  No  tendency  in  modern  opinion  and  in 
modern  legislation  can  be  more  distinct  than  the 
tendency  towards  a  system  which  shall  create 

xiii 


Preface 


a  peasant-proprietary,  and  make  the  tiller  of  the 
soil  the  owner  of  that  much  of  the  soil  which 
he  cultivates.  There  is  also,  and  has  been 
growing  up  for  some  time,  a  tendency  amongst 
civilized  countries  to  recognize  the  artistic, 
picturesque,  and  poetic  associations  belonging 
to  the  culture  of  the  land ;  the  associations  on 
which  M.  Meline  dwells  with  much  effect  as 
tending  so  happily  to  the  development  of  human 
education.  We  have  seen  these  associations 
very  effectively  illustrated  in  some  recent  move- 
ments at  home.  The  Garden  City  is  not  by  any 
means  a  mere  dream ;  it  is  already  becoming  in 
many  places  something  like  a  reality.  There 
are  some  splendid  plans  for  the  improvement 
of  London  itself  on  this  principle,  for  the  con- 
version of  many  of  London's  unpicturesque, 
squalid,  and  overcrowded  regions  into  open 
spaces  with  grass  and  trees,  and  with  houses 
and  cottages  not  too  near  to  stifle  and  darken 
each  other,  but  only  near  enough  to  allow  of 
friendly  intercourse  and  companionship.  There 
are  also  schemes  for  the  creation  of  garden 
cities  in  various  parts  of  the  country,  cities  to 
be  constituted  mainly  of  homes  belonging  to 
the  cultivators  of  the  soil  themselves,  and  not 
open  to  the  indiscriminate  incursion  of  a  slum 
population. 

xiv 


Preface 

M.  Meline  in  his  work  gives  very  naturally 
his  main  attention  to  the  condition  of  the  rural 
population  in   France,   and,   of   course,   that  is 
exactly  the  subject  on  which  we  all  especially 
desire  to  have  the  benefit   of  his   observation 
and  judgment ;  but  the  English  readers  will  find 
that  much  of  his  advice  has  a  distinct  applica- 
tion to  the  development  of  agricultural  industry 
now  going   on  in  Great    Britain   and    Ireland. 
M.   Meline  is  strongly  of  opinion  that  in  the 
creation  of  new  agricultural  communities,  in  the 
construction,  for  instance,  of  garden  cities,  some 
effort  should  always  be  made  to  provide  for  the 
resident's  greater  opportunities  of  amusement 
and  of  genial  intercourse.     He  feels  convinced 
that  in  many  of  the  larger  villages  and  smaller 
towns  the  habits  of  the  residents  are  injuriously 
affected    by  the    absence  of   any  such    oppor- 
tunities, and  that  men,  and  women  as  well,  are 
drawn  into  the  use  of  deleterious  stimulants  by 
mere  lack  of  any  means  of   occupying  them- 
selves when  the  actual  work  of  the  day  is  over. 
He  would,  therefore,  encourage  all  harmless  and 
healthful  amusements,   indoor  and   out-of-door, 
throughout  the  agricultural  settlements  of  the 
coming  time.     So  far  as  out-of-door  amusements 
are  concerned,   our    rural  populations  have,   I 
should  think,  a  decided  advantage  over  those 

xv  b 


Preface 

of  France ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  I  see  good 
reason  for  believing  that,  so  far  as  indoor 
amusements  are  concerned,  our  village  com- 
munities are  not  nearly  so  well  equipped  as 
those  of  France.  We  learn  from  M.  Meline's 
book  that  an  eminent  French  manufacturer  con- 
templates the  creation  of  a  garden  city  capable 
of  holding  6000  workers  at  Champagne-sur- 
Seine,  side  by  side  with  electricity  works. 
M.  Meline,  however,  does  not  put  too  much 
faith  in  the  reforms  to  be  created  by  the 
formation  of  garden  cities. 

As  M.  Meline  very  fairly  puts  it,  the  garden 
city  must  always  be  something  exceptional  and 
isolated,  and  however  numerous  such  cities  may 
be,  they  can  give  shelter  only  to  a  small  minority 
of  the  human  race.  It  is  not  likely  that  all  great 
manufacturers  will  take  to  the  founding  of  such 
delightful  refuges,  or  that  all  the  garden  cities 
actually  founded  are  destined  to  prove  success- 
ful. "The  industrial  struggle  of  to-day,"  to 
quote  M.  Meline's  words,  "  is  no  idyll,  and  to 
win  one's  way  lin  it  it  is  often  necessary  to 
make  the  best  of  very  unpleasant  and  uninviting 
surroundings."  The  great  question  to  be  con- 
sidered is,  as  M.  Meline  puts  it,  how  to  lead 
back  to  the  land  those  surplus  workers  who  can 
find  no  employment  in  the  cities.  The  relief  of 

xvi 


Preface 


the  cities  has  to  be  considered  as  well  as  the 
cultivation  of  the  farms.  The  cities  ought  to  be 
relieved  from  the  crowd  of  unemployed  workers, 
and  the  fields  ought  to  be  supplied  with  a 
number  of  workers  who  would  fain  find  em- 
ployment there,  but  who  know  that  it  is  hope- 
less under  present  conditions  to  seek  any  such 
means  of  making  a  living  there. 

The   reader  will    find  in  this  work  a  very 
faithful  study  of  the  present  condition  of  agricul-  j 
ture,  not  only  in  France,  which  is  naturally  the 
main  subject  of  many  chapters,  but  also  in  many 
European  countries,  and  in  the  United  States, 
Canada,  Mexico,  and  other  lands.      M.    Meline 
argues  that  thus  far  the  ministries  and  parlia- 
ments   of    too    many    countries    have    entirely 
neglected  in    legislation  the  rural    districts   in 
order  to  do  everything  that  could  be  done  for 
the   towns.      So    far   as    France    is   concerned, 
M.  Meline   says  that  the  explanation    is   quite 
simple.     "The  people  in  the  towns  constitute 
the  most  important  voters,  making  their  voices 
heard,  and  securing  obedience  to  tfieir  wishes; 
and   their    needs    are    admirably   served    by    a 
Press  still  more  energetic,  which  flatters  them 
in  order  to  maintain  and  extend  its  own  power, 
as  well  as    by    innumerable    politicians   vieing 
against  each  other  with  promises  which  one  of 

xvii 


Preface 

these  days  may  have  to   be  fulfilled."      "The 
government,"  M.  Meline  declares,  "  is  afraid  of 
these  powers,  and  does   everything  it   can  to 
give    them    satisfaction,    paying    little    or    no 
attention    to    these    inarticulate    peasants    who 
are  so  resigned  to  their  lot,  and  whose  patience 
is  so  wonderful."    The  author  here  is  treating 
only  of  his  own  country,  and  is  not  making  any 
attack  upon  the   government  or  the   Press  of 
England.     I  do  not,  from  my  own  opportunities 
of  observation,  see  any  reason  to  believe  that 
the  ministries  and  the   Press  of  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland  have  been  wholly  absorbed  during 
recent    years   in    studying   the  welfare   of   the 
citizen    peoples,   and    have   remained,    or  have 
been  allowed  to  remain,  entirely  indifferent  to 
the  state  of  the  agricultural  regions  and  their 
populations.     Few  other  subjects  have  occupied 
more  attention  on    the  part  of  the   House   of 
Commons  during  recent  years  than  the  many 
questions  of  land  settlement  which  have  come 
up    for   discussion;   and,   indeed,    I    should    be 
rather  inclined  to  say  that,  while  the  public  in 
general  may  have  given  much  attention  to  the 
troubles  caused  by  the  overcrowding  of  cities, 
the  ministries  and  parliaments  have  not  shown 
adequate  energy  in  the  efforts  to  supply  some 
remedy    for     those    evils.      It     may    be    said, 

xviii 


Preface 

however,  that  the  efforts  to  solve  either  question, 
if  carried  out  at  once  with  courage  and  dis- 
cretion, must  directly  tend  to  the  solving  of 
the  other.  The  study  of  M.  Meline's  work 
helps  of  itself  to  make  this  fact  more  and  more 
clear.  One  inestimable  benefit  which  must 
come  from  the  return  to  the  land  would  be  the 
relief  of  the  overcrowded  cities ;  and  the  relief 
of  the  overcrowded  cities  would  find  its  best 
and  readiest  means  of  accomplishment  by  the 
opening  up  of  new  occupation  for  workers  on 
the  land.  Thus  there  ought  to  be  no  serious 
likelihood  of  any  antagonism  between  town  and 
country  concerning  this  great  movement  for  the 
re-occupation  of  the  land.  He  who  helps  the 
one  cause  helps  the  other  cause— that  much  at 
least  is  quite  certain. 

M.  Meline  concludes  his  task  by  declaring 
that  to  ameliorate  the  lot  of  the  working-classes, 
and  ward  off  the  dangers  which  are  impending, 
there  is  but  one  thing  to  do,  and  that  is  "to 
provide  them  with  new  fields  of  labour  by  send- 
ing them  back  to  the  land."  M.  Meline  sums 
up  at  the  close  of  his  final  chapter  the  solution 
of  the  problem  before  us  "which  may  be  said 
to  be  merely  an  expansion  of  a  profound  thought 
uttered  long  ago  by  a  Chinese  philosopher — a 
thought  which  should  be  inscribed  upon  the 

xix 


Preface 

walls  of  our  schools  in  letters  of  gold — '  The  well- 
being  of  a  people  is  like  a  tree ;  agriculture  is  its 
root,  manufacture  and  commerce  are  its  branches 
and  leaves ;  if  the  root  is  injured  the  leaves  fall, 
the  branches  break  away,  and  the  tree  dies.' " 

I  have  thus  set  forth — and  sometimes,  to  the 
great  advantage  of  my  readers,  in  M.  Meline's 
own  words,  at  least  in  the  English  translation 
of  them — the  main   purposes  of  a  work  which 
cannot  fail  to  come  in  for  world-wide  attention 
and  even  study.     I  have  not  made  any  attempt 
to  describe  the  methods  by  which  the  author 
believes   that  the  results  which  he  hopes    for 
can  be  accomplished,  the  manner  in  which  State 
guidance  and  State  aid  can  be  given  to  such  a 
movement,   the  specifics  for    the  regulation  of 
foreign  competition  among  the  nations  of  the 
earth,  the  means  of  remedying  or  relieving  the 
troubles  brought  about  by  seasons  of  agricultural 
distress,  and  all  the  many  other  difficulties  in 
the  way  of  that  return  to  the  land  which  the 
author  regards  as  the  only  possible  panacea  for 
some  of  humanity's  troubles.     M.  Meline's  book 
must  be  carefully  read  and  studied  if  its  purpose 
is  to  be  thoroughly  appreciated,  and  no  mere 
summary   of   its    pages    given    by  an   outsider 
could  possibly  render  justice  to  it.     The  greater 
part  of  the  book  is,  of  course,  occupied  with  the 

XX 


Preface 


land  question  as  it  is  working  itself  out  in 
France,  and  in  which  there  are  many  operating 
conditions,  conditions  alike  of  climate,  of  usage, 
and  of  law,  which  naturally  do  not  find  their 
exact  parallel  in  all  or  in  any  other  countries; 
but,  as  I  have  already  said,  the  author  appears 
to  have  made  a  deep  study  of  the  agricultural 
question  as  it  presents  itself  in  many  other 
countries  as  well  as  in  his  own,  and  the  manner 
in  which  he  proposes  that  his  project  should  be 
worked  out  will  be  found  worthy  of  study  in 
every  country  where  the  claims  of  manufacturing 
and  agricultural  industry  are  coming  into  com- 
petition. I  have  made  these  comments  mainly 
because  it  occurred  to  me  that  some  English 
readers  might  be  discouraged  by  discovering 
early  in  the  book  that  its  author  was  dealing 
for  the  most  part  with  French  conditions.  Any 
reader  who  may  feel  thus  discouraged  at  the 
outset  will  find,  if  he  perseveres,  that  although 
the  volume  is  mainly  French  in  its  descriptions 
and  its  horizon,  yet  the  main  purpose  of  the 
author  may  be  appreciated,  and  his  proposals 
turned  to  good  account  under  whatever  skies 
and  amid  whatever  legalized  conditions.  M. 
Meline's  views  on  economic  questions  are  some- 
times at  entire  variance  with  my  own,  but  I 
hope  that  I  am  not  in  any  sense  disqualified 

xxi 


Preface 

by  that  fact  from  rendering  full  justice  to  the 
general  objects  of  the  great  movement  which 
the  author  invites,  and  indeed  regards  as  in- 
evitable. M.  Meline  is  conservative  enough  in 
his  views  to  satisfy  the  best  regulated  of  British 
Conservative  minds,  and  he  tells  us  himself  that 
"  the  spirit  of  the  French  peasant  contains  trea- 
sures of  good  sense  and  right  thinking  which 
will  strengthen  it  against  the  sophisms  of  the 
revolutionary  school,  and  save  it  from  the 
perilous  adventures  into  which  socialism  would 
tempt  it."  Furthermore,  he  assures  us  that  "The 
return  to  the  land  will  not  be  brought  about  by 
violent  and  empirical  measures,  but  scientifically, 
and  by  men  of  good  will  working  in  concord 
and  unity  for  the  ordering  of  the  products  of 
the  nation  in  harmony  and  proportion." 

Such  is  the  vision  of  the  future  which  M. 
Meline  opens  up  to  our  eyes.  It  is  indeed  an 
idyllic  and  a  fascinating  picture.  An  English  poet 
laments  for  the  day,  "  Ere  England's  griefs  began, 
when  every  rood  of  ground  maintained  its  man." 
There  is  no  precise  definition  of  the  historical 
period  described  as  the  time  "  ere  England's 
griefs  began,"  and  one  may  well  be  inclined  to 
believe  that  with  the  very  beginning  of  every 
people  some  griefs  must  already  have  been 
foreshadowed.  But  without  entering  into  any 

xxii 


Preface 

consideration  of  that  question,  it  must  seem  to 
most  of  us  an  ideal  time  when  every  rood  of 
ground  shall  be  able  to  maintain  its  man,  and  the 
return  to  the  land,  which  M.  Meline  sees  in  pro- 
spect, is  to  "enable  the  land  to  maintain  its  work- 
ing woman  also  in  prosperity  and  self-respect. 
Such  a  period,  indeed,  when  the  cities  shall  no 
longer  be  overcrowded,  and  vast  spaces  of  land 
now  uncultivated  although  with  a  half-starving 
peasantry   striving  to   maintain   a  living,  there 
shall  be  divided  among  the  ownership  of  hard- 
working,  intelligent,    and    prosperous    peasant 
proprietors,   must    seem  to   most  of  us  like   a 
return  of  the  golden  age.     It  must  also  be  borne 
in  mind  that    M.   Meline,  although  with  many 
poetic  touches  in  his  style,  is  not  a  poet  or  a 
mere  idealist,  but  a  practical  and  scientific  thinker, 
an  experienced  statesman,  who  has  studied  his 
question  thoroughly,  and  has  satisfied  himself 
that  the  condition  of  things  he  foresees  can  be 
established  by  improved  legislation,  and  by  the 
influence  of  healthful  co-operation.      It  is  true 
that  the  book  now  published  has  mainly  to  do 
with  the  land  and  the  agricultural  populations 
of  France,  but  we  all  know  that  the  depressing 
conditions  which  he  shows  us  as  existing   in 
France,  are  even  still  the  actual  and  the  common 
experience  of  most  or  all  of  the  other  countries 

xxiii 


Preface 

of  our  modern  world.  We  may,  therefore, 
reasonably  assume  that  if  the  happy  solution  of 
the  hitherto  unsolved  problem  can  be  accom- 
plished in  France,  it  may  also  be  accomplished 
with  at  least  'equal  success  in  our  own  countries. 
The  period  is  specially  favourable  for  the  begin- 
ning in  sober,  serious  earnest  of  such  a  result  by 
the  adaptation  of  our  existing  laws  to  the  pur- 
pose of  bringing  about  the  return  to  the  land. 
The  idea  has  of  late  been  taking  a  firm  hold  on 
the  minds  of  all  thinking  men  and  women.  I 
have  already  pointed  out  that  the  state  of  the 
Irish  peasantry  is  even  now  showing  how  much 
can  be  done  for  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  and 
for  the  comfort  of  its  workers  by  the  legislative 
measures  which  even  Conversative  ministeries 
have  helped  to  introduce,  and  which  half  a 
century  ago  our  legislators  would  have  regarded 
as  utterly  impracticable,  and  also  as  monstrously 
unjust  to  the  ruling  landlords,  whose  arbitrary 
and  seignorial  rights  such  measures  sought  to 
abolish. 

I  may  say  for  myself,  that  I  feel  all  the 
greater  satisfaction  when  I  remember  that  the 
plans  and  the  predictions  of  our  author  come 
from  a  man  who  in  many  of  his  economic  prin- 
ciples does  not  accept  the  doctrines  of  most  of 
the  British  public.  If  M.  Meline  can  see  his  way 

xxiv 


Preface 

to  such  results,  how  easy  ought  to  be  their 
accomplishment  in  a  country  like  England,  which 
is  for  the  most  part  in  full  harmony  with  the 
doctrines  of  men  like  Richard  Cobden  and  John 
Bright.  The  truth  is,  that  the  great  principles 
which  M.  Meline  advocates,  have  a  far  wider 
scope  than  can  be  surveyed  and  comprehended 
within  the  mere  limitations  of  this  or  that 
economic  school.  We  must  keep  before  our 
minds  steadily,  to  begin  with,  that  the  two  great 
objects  we  have  in  view  are  the  relief  of  the 
cities  from  the  superabundance  of  populations 
striving  hopelessly  to  obtain  a  living  where  the 
population  is  already  superabundant,  and  the 
restoration  to  the  uncultivated  land  of  that  inde- 
pendent peasant  proprietorship  which  alone  can 
save  it  from  lying  waste.  As  I  read  this  volume  it 
is  a  pleading,  first  of  all,  for  the  peasant  owner- 
ship of  the  piece  of  land  which  the  peasant 
cultivates,  and  therefore  a  diffusion  of  that 
skilful  and  intelligent  labour  which  can  make  the 
cultivation  of  the  land  a  benefit  and  a  blessing  to 
the  poor  toiler  as  well  as  to  the  lord  of  the  soil. 
The  "  Return  to  the  Land  "  seems  to  me  sure 
of  a  welcome  among  the  intelligent  and  the 
progressive  states  and  nations  of  the  world. 

JUSTIN  MCCARTHY. 


xxv 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

PREFACE     v 

INTRODUCTION i 

CHAPTER  I 

THE  GROWTH  OF  MANUFACTURE 

I.  The  Nineteenth  Century— The  Sudden  Growth  of 

the  Manufacturing  Industries — Three  Periods    .        7 

II.  The  Commercial  Supremacy  of  England         .        .        9 

III.  The  Other  Nations  establish  Industries— Triumph 

of  the  Protectionist  System — The  United  States 
and  Japan  join  in  .        .        .        .        .        .10 

IV.  Swollen    Markets — The   Advance  of   Germany — 

Development  of  Other  Countries .        .        .        .21 

CHAPTER   II 
THE  INDUSTRIAL  CONGESTION 

I.  The  Third  Period  in  the  History  of  Modern  Manu- 
factures— The  Crisis  of  1901 27 

II.  Exports  an  Index  to  Over-production — Their  Extra- 

ordinary Increase  of  Recent  Years       ...      30 

III.  German  Methods  and  Devices — Cartels  ...      35 

IV.  Evidences  and  Effects  of  Over-production       .        .      39 

CHAPTER  III 
FRANCE.     IMPROVEMENTS  IN  MACHINERY 

I.  The  Development  of  Manufacture  in  France — Total 

Horse-power  employed 47 

xxvii 


Contents 


II.  The  Cotton  and  Wool  Industry— Difficulties  of  their 

Position —Silk— Metals 50 

III.  Protection  charged  with  Over-production— A  Fallacy 

— England  and  Belgium 57 

IV.  Permanent   Causes  of  Over-production — The  Im- 

provement in  Machinery — New  Trades — Reduc- 
tion of  Manual  Labour 60 

CHAPTER   IV 

MERCHANTS  AND  WORKMEN 

I.  Resistance  offered  by  Workmen  to  Machinery — 

Their  Folly 67 

II.  The  Socialistic  Remedy  for  Over-production — 
Shorter  Hours  of  Labour— The  Solidarity  of  the 
World's  Markets— The  Need  of  International 
Accord 69 

III.  Unemployment,  a  Sign  of  the  Industrial  Distress — 

The  Grave  Aspect  in  England,  Germany,  and 
France — Vagabondism 72 

IV.  The    Commercial   Plethora— Too   many    Middle- 

men— The  Condition  of  the  Petty  Tradesman     .      75 

CHAPTER  V 

THE  RETURN  TO  THE  LAND 

I.  Obstacles  and  Objections — The  Agricultural  Crisis      83 
II.  Tariff  Reform  and  its  Effects 84 

III.  The  Causes  of  the  Rural  Exodus     .  .        .87 

IV.  Agriculture    and    Manufacture    compared  —  Raw 

Material  and  Costs  of  Production — Agricultural 

Loans 92 

V.  Taxation  —  Fiscal   Inequality — Personal    Estate — 

Income  Tax 96 

VI.  Unsatisfactory  Methods   of  Sale— Middlemen— A 

Remedy — Co-operation 106 

VII.  Co-operative  Societies  for  Production  and  Sale — 

Exports 1 10 

VIII.  Agricultural  Training— The  Training  of  Worn  en    .     120 

xxviii 


Contents 


CHAPTER  VI 

STATE  AID 

PAGE 

I.  The  Risks  involved  in  Agriculture— Methods  of  In- 
surance— Cantonal  Hospitals       .        .        .        .129 
II.  Benevolent  Institutions — Mutual  Benefit  Societies 

— Savings  Banks 134 

III.  The  "  Bien  de  Famille  "—How  to  establish  it— The 

Peasant  Proprietor — Home  Industries.        .        .138 


CHAPTER  VII 
VILLAGE  LIFE.     THE  PUBLIC  HEALTH 

I.  Need  of  Intellectual  Enjoyments  in  the  Country — 
Changes  to  be  brought  about — The  Absentee 

Bourgeois 147 

II.  The  Craving  for  Employment  under  Government 

— De-centralization 150 

III.  Capitalists  and  the  Land — The  Agricultural  Revival 

—Diminution  of  Industrial  Profits        .        .        .     153 

IV.  Hygiene  and  Public  Health— Tuberculosis     .        .155 
V.  Workmen's  Gardens — How  to  cope  with  Vagabond- 
age— State  Aid — Increase    in  the   Numbers  of 
Peasant  Proprietors— The  Birth-rate  .        .        .161 


CHAPTER  VIII 

ARTISANS  AND  PEASANTS 

I.  Socialistic  Solutions— M.  Vandervelde's  Ideas        .     169 
II.  The    Transplanting    of    Manufactories    into    the 

Country 172 

III.  Garden  Cities — Port  Sunlight  and  Bournville  .        .     175 

IV.  The  Transition  from  Manufacture  to  Agriculture — 

Modifications  of  the  Evil  of  Unemployment         .     178 

xxix 


Contents 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE  PRESENT   CONDITION  OF  AGRICULTURE 

PAGE 

I.  Machinery  and  the  Saving  of  Labour — Limits  to  the 
Possibilities  in  this  Direction — Limitless  Possi- 
bilities for  the  Agricultural  Market  .  .  .185 
II.  The  Call  of  the  Land— The  Universal  Tendency- 
Economic  Causes — Mr.  Chamberlain's  Proposals 
— Their  Weak  Point — The  Agrarian  Movement  in 
Germany,  its  Power  and  Success— New  Treaties 
of  Commerce — Italy— The  United  States  .  .189 


CHAPTER  X 
THE  COLONIES.     AGRARIAN  SOCIALISM 

I.  The  Position  of  France  from  an  Agricultural  Point 
of  View — Her  Resources — Reclaimable  Land — 

Foreign  Labour — Statistics 207 

II.  Bourgeois  and  Tradesman— The  Dividing  up  of  the 
Land— Land  in  the  Colonies— Our  Colonial  Pos- 
sessions    •  •  .211 

III.  The  Need  of  Improved  Education  —Aids  to  Coloni- 

zation      •    213 

IV.  Algeria  —  Inadequate    Population— M.    Jonnart's 

Plan 217 

V.  Agrarian  Socialism— Its  Various  Forms— Remedies    220 
VI.  Conclusion 238 


XXX 


THE 

RETURN   TO  THE   LAND 

INTRODUCTION 

century  just  closed  must  rank  always 
as  one  of  the  most  marvellous  periods  in 
the  history  of  the  world.  So  far-reaching  are 
the  transformations  it  has  brought  about,  we 
may  say  without  hyperbole  that  it  has  moulded 
the  world  anew.  To  attempt  to  take  stock  of 
what  has  happened  during  even  the  latter  half 
of  it,  is  to  stand  amazed  at  all  that  has  been 
swrept  away  and  all  that  has  been  ushered  in. 
Such  metamorphoses  have  been  wrought  in  the 
life  alike  of  society  and  of  the  individual,  that 
it  seems  almost  like  a  dream  when  one  goes 
back  in  mind  to  the  days  of  one's  youth. 

The  further  past  is  rich  in  great  events,  and 
every  century  has  its  distinguishing  mark ;  no 
two  are  alike,  yet  there  is  a  family  resemblance 
between  all.  They  seem  to  grow  out  of  each 
other  in  a  natural  process  of  evolution. 

I  B 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


With  the  nineteenth  century  —  above  all, 
with  its  close  — the  scene  changes  suddenly, 
and  we  find  ourselves  in  an  unknown  land. 
There  would  seem  to  have  been  a  break 
in  the  evolutionary  process.  In  less  than 
fifty  years  everything  is  turned  upside  down 
— manufacture,  agriculture,  commerce,  methods 
of  transport,  everything.  It  is  nothing  less 
than  a  revolution  we  find  in  progress, 
carrying  all  things  along  with  it  like  a 
torrent. 

To  cause  and  consummate  this  revolution, 
all  that  was  needed  was  the  appearance  upon 
the  scene  of  a  new  force,  until  then  little 
talked  of — science.  In  a  moment  science 
gave  a  new  aspect  to  everything — the  whole 
world  had  to  keep  pace  with  her.  Ever 
since,  we  have  been  going  at  a  gallop — 
a  breathless  gallop  that  prevents  us  from 
seeing  where  we  are. 

Now  there  is  danger  in  this  headlong  career 
— the  danger  of  our  coming  croppers  over 
the  obstacles  we  cannot  foresee.  The  present 
would  seem,  therefore,  to  be  a  fitting  moment 
to  call  a  halt  in  order  to  look  around  and 
ahead,  and  to  take  note  of  the  far-reaching 
transformation  that  is  going  on. 

The  purpose  of  my  book  is  to  examine  into 
2 


Introduction 


the  actual  facts  of  this  transformation,  to  set 
forth  impartially  the  good  and  the  ill  that  it 
has  entailed,  to  ascertain  whither  it  is  leading 
us,  and  to  discover  the  means  of  turning  it  to 
the  best  interests  of  mankind. 


THE 

GROWTH    OF    MANUFACTURE 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  GROWTH   OF  MANUFACTURE 
I 

THE  outstanding  feature  of  the  nineteenth 
century  is  the  immense  development  of 
the  manufacturing  industries.  Manufacture  to- 
day is  as  different  from  what  it  was  a  hundred 
years  ago,  as  are  our  social  institutions  from 
those  of  the  Middle  Ages.  In  less  than  half  a 
century  it  has  sprung  up  like  a  colossal  tree, 
drawing  to  itself  all  the  living  forces  of  the 
world. 

It  was  inevitable  that  this  change  should  take 
place,  from  the  moment  when  science  made  its 
way  upon  the  stage  of  primitive  industry,  ever 
turning,  until  then,  in  the  same  circle,  ever 
running  in  the  same  grooves.  There  being 
available  only  enough  manual  labour  to  work 
the  inadequate  and  inefficient  machinery  of  those 
days,  the  limits  of  production  were  always  fixed 
by  the  number  of  arms  in  existence  and  their 
strength  or  weakness.  There  were  no  captains 

7 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


of  industry  at  this  period— only  master  workers 
living  in  the  midst  of  their  small  body  of 
apprentices,  like  fathers  among  their  children. 
There  was  no  such  thing  as  competition  in  the 
present  meaning  of  the  word,  and  over-produc- 
tion was  unknown.  Every  workshop  depended 
upon  its  neighbouring  clientele,  and  knew  exactly 
the  extent  of  its  needs ;  the  difficulty  of  com- 
munication and  the  cost  of  transfer  had  the 
effect  of  securing  every  industrial  concern  its 
own  markets,  capable  of  keeping  it  going 
peacefully  and  without  anxiety. 

The  history  of  modern  manufacture  begins 
with  the  wonderful  inventions  which  have  sub- 
stituted machinery  for  the  arms,  and  even  the 
brains,  of  the  workers ;  and  which,  by  means  of 
rapid  and  inexpensive  transport,  have  brought 
all  the  markets  of  the  world  into  touch,  making 
one  great  common  market  of  them  all. 

Let  us  see  through  what  successive  stages 
the  manufacturing  industries  have  passed  on 
their  way  to  the  position  in  which  we  find  them 
now.  We  can  divide  their  history  into  three 
separate  periods  corresponding  to  three  quite 
distinct  stages. 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 


II 

The  first  period  begins  with  the  adaptation  of 
science  to  industry,  the  employment  of  steam- 
engines  and  the  introduction  of  mechanical 
labour  resulting  in  the  gradual  elimination  of 
workmen.  It  is  obvious  that  the  nation  destined 
to  profit  at  the  start  by  this  revolution  must  be 
the  one  best'  supplied  .by  nature  with  iron,  the 
material  for  the  machines,  and  with  coal,  their 
daily  bread.  It  was  inevitable,  therefore,  that 
England,  so  richly  endowed  in  both  respects, 
should  take  the  lead  and  become  the  foremost 
industrial  country ;  it  was  only  natural,  more- 
over, that,  having  no  rival  in  a  condition  to 
compete  with  her,  she  should  have  secured  all 
the  markets  and  become  a  sort  of  universal 
provider  to  the  world. 

During  this  first  period,  England  wears  the 
aspect  of  a  giant  capable  of  crushing  all  coali- 
tions, and  she  is  so  assured  of  being  all- 
powerful  that  she  equips  herself  as  though  she 
must  retain  this  ascendency  for  ever.  Her  glory 
extends  to  the  confines  of  the  globe,  and  she 
lords  it  over  all  the  markets  of  Europe,  Asia, 
and  the  New  World,  distributing  her  enormous 
output  in  every  direction ;  she  seems  to  have 

9 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


a  real  monopoly,  and  all  the  other  nations 
seem  resigned  to  her  mastery. 

For  a  moment  it  seemed  as  though  she  were 
disposed  to  let  France  have  a  share,  but]  the 
illusions  born  of  the  famous  treaties  of  1860 
were  not  long-lived;  we  soon  discovered  that 
we  had  been  merely  the  cat's-paws  for  our  more 
powerful  neighbour,  and  that,  instead  of  finding 
our  way  into  her  field,  it  was  she  who  was 
finding  her  way  more  and  more  into  ours.  Our 
principal  industries,  taught  by  sharp  experience, 
came  to  the  conclusion  at  last  that  contest  with 
an  adversary  so  well-armed  was  impossible,  and 
gave  out  a  cry  of  alarm,  which  was  only  silenced 
by  the  downfall  of  the  Empire. 

We  come  now  to  our  second  period,  following 
upon  the  year  1870. 

Ill 

After  1870,  a  sudden  change  begins  to  operate 
in  the  economic  condition  of  Europe,  and  finishes 
by  extending  over  every  part  of  the  world. 

1A11  the  great  nations  evince  their  intention  to 
shake  off  the  industrial  yoke  of  England,  and  to 
create,  each  on  its  own  territory,  manufactures 
capable  of  ministering  to  home  needs.  To 
defend  themselves  against  foreign  competition 

10 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 

and   facilitate    the    establishment    of   these    in- 
dustries, all  these  countries  without  exception 
fortified  themselves  behind  a  tariff  of   import,/ 
duties.     "  We  have  no  need  of  the  foreigner," 
was  the  mot  d'ordre,  "  we  are  self-sufficing." 

To  be  self-sufficing — that  is  the  ideal  which 
inspires  and  dominates  the  economic  regime  of 
most  nations.  That  this  should  come  about  was 
inevitable,  and  England  ought  to  have  foreseen 
it.  What  could  be  more  natural  than  that  a 
nation  should  seek  to  provide  for  its  own  needs 
instead  of  calling  upon  the  foreigner  to  supply 
them  ?  Charity,  well-administered,  begins  at 
home— is  not  that  the  A  B  C  of  economic 
science  ?  You  may  censure  and  deplore  as 
much  as  you  please  what  you  may  regard  as  a 
narrow  point  of  view,  a  lack  of  high  principle  in 
commercial  life,  but  it  would  be  naif  to  show 
surprise  at  it.  How  could  any  one  nation  lay 
claim  to  a  right  to  be  a  provider  to  all  the  others, 
and  to  prevent  them  from  emancipating  them- 
selves by  establishing  industries  of  their  own? 
"  It  is  sheer  stupidity,"  say  free  traders,  "  to 
persist  in  buying  dear  at  home  what  you  can  get 
so  cheap  from  abroad."  "  Possibly,"  the  nation 
interested  may  reply,  "  but  I  prefer  to  give  my 
money  to  my  working  classes  rather  than  to 
foreigners,  first  of  all  because  it  gives  them  their 

ii 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


living,  secondly  because  it  remains  in  the 
country  and  benefits  my  entire  population 
instead  of  my  neighbours." 

It  is  easy  to  understand  how  the  new  idea 
made  its  way  everywhere,  its  opponents  becom- 
ing fewer  and  fewer  every  day.  After  Germany, 
which  opened  the  ball,  Austria,  Russia,  France, 
Spain,  Italy,  and  Switzerland  joined  in.  The 
whole  of  Europe,  save  for  England  and,  to  a 
certain  extent,  Belgium,  drew  up  tariffs  and 
protection  became  universal. 

Thus  it  was  that  all  the  European  markets 
became  closed  against  England,  and  that  she 
found  herself  obliged  to  seek  new  openings 
elsewhere  for  her  immense  production.  She 
had  recourse  to  America,  Asia,  and  Africa,  and 
for  some  years  she  met  with  all  the  success  she 
could  desire  and  imagined  herself  saved;  but 
it  was  not  long  before  she  aroused  in  these 
regions  also  the  same  feeling  of  independence 
that  had  been  evoked  in  Europe,  combined 
with  the  same  instinct  of  self-preservation. 

America  was  the  first  to  enter  into  line  with 
European  nations,  doing  so  impetuously  and  with 
a  sublime  disregard  for  all  obstacles  in  the  way, 
bringing  into  her  economic  reforms  all  the 
practical  spirit  and  the  tenacity  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  race,  together  with  the  bellicose  ardour  of 

12 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 

a  young  people  confident  of  its  destinies.  Burn- 
ing its  boats  and  leaving  to  elderly  Europe  the 
prudent  formulas  of  a  modified  protection,  she 
took  up  her  stand  on  the  ground  of  prohibition. 
All  the  economists  laughed  at  her,  and  predicted 
that  she  would  stifle  behind  her  Great  Wall  of 
China,  and  would  soon  have  to  call  out  for  mercy. 
She  let  them  talk,  continued  to  keep  herself 
closed  off,  and  thus  succeeded  in  establishing 
upon  her  soil  all  those  industries  we  now  see 
capable  of  ministering  to  the  needs  of  her  ever- 
growing population.* 

The  first  consequence  of  this  step  on  the  part 
of  the  United  States  was  the  abolition  of  Europe's 
principal  market  for  manufactured  goods  —  a 
clientele  of  eighty  millions.  It  was  hard  to  see 
how  the  European  industries  would  recover  from 
the  blow.  It  was  a  significant  warning  for  them 
in  any  case,  and  a  little  reflection  should  have 
sufficed  to  make  them  realize  that  the  hour  for 
great  ambitions  had  passed,  and  that  the  most 
elementary  prudence  bade  them  slacken  their! 
pace  and  beware  of  over-production. 

They  might  well  have  foreseen,  from  this 
moment,  another  danger  not  less  inevitable — the 

*  The  United  States  produced,  in  1899,  13,000,000  tons  of 
cast-iron — that  is  to  say,  more  than  all  the  rest  of  the  world 
produced  in  1870  (12,000,000). 

13 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


danger  that  the  Americans,  with  their  headstrong 
temperament,  would  not  stop  half-way,  but  would 
go  to  extremes  in  their  economical  development 
by  becoming  exporters  in  their  turn,  and  endeav- 
ouring, like  England,  to  invade  the  whole  world. 
They  have  succeeded  in  this  with  a  dizzying 
rapidity  which  is  marvellous;  in  a  few  short 
years  they  have  taken  their  place  among  the 
great  exporting  countries,  and  the  results  obtained 
are  almost  beyond  belief.* 

Let  us  leave  on  one  side  the  exportation  of 
agricultural  products  and  raw  materials,  because 
we  shall  be  told  that  this  kind  of  export  is  a 
necessity  and  a  benefit  to  the  importing  countries. 
Let  us  speak  only  of  manufactured  products. 
To  estimate  these,  it  may  suffice  to  say  that 
during  the  last  decade  they  have  augmented  at 
the  rate  of  146  per  cent,  while  the  increase  in 
the  export  of  agricultural  products  amounted 
only  to  36  per  cent. 

The  strange  and  disquieting  thing  about  this 

*  The  total  exports  of  the  United  States  passed  from 
$4,130,000,000  in  1890,  to  $7,288,000,000  in  1903,  an 
increase  of  76  per  cent.  There  was  a  slight  decrease  in  1904, 
owing  to  the  general  crisis,  and  it  came  down  to  $7,128,000,000. 

American  exports  to  England  have  increased  at  the  rate  of 
127  per  cent,  during  the  last  twenty-three  years ;  to  India  at 
the  rate  of  126  per  cent. ;  to  British  North  America  at  the  rate 
of  322  per  cent.  During  the  last  few  years  American  imports 
have,  it  should  be  added,  been  increasing  noticeably. 

14 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 

colossal  expansion  is  that  America  has  not 
sought  out  new,  unoccupied  markets,  as  might 
have  been  supposed ;  she  has  resolutely  attacked 
the  markets  of  Europe — those  which  were  already 
being  best  worked — those  of  France  and  Germany 
and  England  herself. 

In  1903,  the  exports  of  the  United  States 
amounted  to  $1,013,000,000,  whereas  those  of  all 
the  rest  of  the  world  came  to  only  $1,458,000,000.* 

*  To  form  a  just  idea  of  the  vast  aspirations  of  the  United 
States,  and  of  their  belief  in  themselves,  one  should  read  in  its 
entirety  an  article  published  a  few  years  ago  in  Scribnet*s 
Magazine,  from  the  pen  of  an  American  of  high  standing  in 
finance,  Mr.  Vanderlip,  assistant  secretary  to  the  Treasury. 
"Formerly,"  says  Mr.  Vanderlip,  "America  was  the  great 
exporter  of  cereals  and  raw  material,  and  Europe  the  great 
workshop  in  which  these  products  were  turned  to  account. 
Now  the  roles  are  changed  ;  our  exports  of  industrial  products 
increase  from  day  to  day,  to  such  a  degree  that  the  figures 
reached  during  the  last  three  years  justify  the  nervousness  now 
evinced  in  Europe  regarding  our  industrial  invasion.  The 
exportation  of  manufactured  articles  during  the  years  1889- 
1897  amounted  to  $163,000,000  on  an  average,  in  1898  it 
amounted  to  $290,000,000,  in  1899  to  $333,000,000,  and 
in  1900  to  $434,000,000.  This  ever-increasing  exporta- 
tion has  been  accompanied  by  a  corollary  phenomenon  :  the 
rejection  by  our  own  markets  of  foreign  industrial  products. 
America  is  becoming  more  and  more  a  self-sufficing  country  ; 
our  industry  is  gaining  more  and  more  the  mastery  of  the 
international  market." 

To  give  to  the  above  sentences  their  full  significance,  Mr. 
Vanderlip  proceeds  to  base  upon  them  the  following  prophecy  : 
"  The  more  industrial  products  we  supply  to  other  countries, 

15 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


Not  content  with  making  themselves  inde- 
pendent of  Europe  and  then  depriving  Europe  of 
some  portion  of  her  own  home  markets,  the 
United  States  are  now  laying  siege  to  those 
markets  further  afield,  which  Europe  used  to 
dominate — dethroning  her  in  South  America, 
in  China,  and  even  in  Canada,  where  they  are 
pursuing  England  into  her  last  intrenchments. 

It  might  have  been  supposed  that  after  the 
United  States  no  other  competitor  would  venture 
to  enter  the  lists,  and  that  the  general  economic 
situation  was  now  settled  for  good  and  all. 
What,  then,  was  the  general  consternation  when, 
a  few  years  ago,  a  small  people  who  had  not 
been  given  much  thought,  and  who  were  con- 
sidered half-savage,  suddenly  emerged  from  their 
shell  (after  a  slow  period  of  incubation  that  had 
not  been  much  observed  by  the  sleepy  eyes  of 
European  diplomacy),  and  speedily  won  for 
themselves  a  place  in  the  front  rank  of  indus- 
trial races,  pending  the  moment  when  they  wrere 
to  take  a  similar  position  amongst  great  military 
powers:  I  speak  of  Japan. 

It  was  so  recently  as  1897  that  Japan,  follow- 
ing the  example  of  the  United  States,  set  about 

the  less  they  will  be  able  to  manufacture  themselves  ;  and 
certain  enthusiasts  already  foresee  the  day  when  America  will 
be  the  great  provider  for  the  entire  world." 

16 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 

reforming  its  customs  and  became  resolutely 
protectionist.  In  a  moment  almost  it  had  estab- 
lished great  industries  on  its  own  soil,  borrowing 
from  Europe  her  industrial  science  and  her  most 
perfected  machinery.  Once  started,  Japan  never 
looked  back,  and  the  results  of  her  action  are 
prodigious :  in  1895,  sne  could  boast  only  518,000 
spindles  for  cotton ;  in  1902  she  possessed 
1,400,000.  Her  production  of  oil,  which  did 
not  exceed  3,000,000  tuns  in  1893,  amounted  in 
1901  to  8,000,000.  From  having  been  merely  an 
importer,  she  became  suddenly  one  of  the  most 
formidable  of  exporters  :  her  general  exports 
rose  from  25,000,000  yen  in  1898  to  289,000,000 
in  1903.  Her  exports  of  cotton  goods,  which 
amounted  to  63,000,000  francs  in  1902,  amounted 
in  the  following  year  to  101,000,000.  As  regards 
silk,  her  progress  was  still  more  remarkable. 
Her  silk  exports  in  1903  reached  the  enormous 
figure  of  289,000,000  francs. 

This  movement  of  expansion  will  not  stop 
there;  the  wonderful  successes  which  estab- 
lished Japan  as  a  great  military  power  were 
merely  a  prelude  to  the  economic  conquests 
which  await  her,  and  on  which  she  counts;  for 
she  had  this  in  view  when  she  undertook  the 
war,  and  her  struggle  with  Russia  was  but  a 
proof  of  her  intention  to  capture  the  Asiatic 

17  c 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


market  and  to  remain  master  of  it.  The  great 
nations  of  Europe,  which  looked  on  benevolently 
at  Japan's  attack  upon  gigantic  Russia,  and 
which  rejoiced  in  secret  over  Russia's  humilia- 
tion, will  learn  one  day  to  their  cost  that  jealousy 
is  an  evil  counsellor,  and  that  they  have  been 
favouring  the  game  of  the  most  formidable  of  all 
their  competitors.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the 
United  States,  which  at  one  time  hugged  the 
notion  of  being  Japan's  provider,  and  which 
soon  will  find  themselves  not  only  driven  out 
of  this  market,  but  ousted  also  from  the  huge 
market  in  China,  of  which  they  also  dreamed. 

One  would  have  to  be  blind  not  to  see  that 
Japan  is  preparing  to  play  the  same  economic 
role  in  the  Extreme  East  that  Germany  played 
in  Europe  after  1870,  with  this  difference,  which 
ensures  her  expansion— an  advantage  over  Ger- 
many— that  she  is  as  inaccessible  and  invulner- 
able as  England  by  reason  of  her  insular 
position. 

The  war  in  Manchuria,  as  she  regarded  it, 
was  merely  her  first  application  of  a  new 
Monroe  Doctrine  for  the  Yellow  Race.  She 
considers  herself  called  upon  to  take  her  place 
as  leader  of  this  race,  and  take  it  she  will :  her 
victories  over  the  white  race  have  assured  her 
an  irresistible  ascendency  over  it. 

18 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 

It  seems  probable  that  she  will  not  abuse  her 
power  just  at  first,  and  that  she  will  not  push 
her  military  advantages  too  far  for  fear  of  com- 
promising them,  and  of  provoking  a  general 
coalition  against  her.  She  will  doubtless  content 
herself  with  organising  the  warlike  elements  of 
China  just  as  she  organised  her  own,  and  with 
holding  them  in  leash  ready  to  let  loose  when- 
ever the  hour  for  the  great  struggle  with  the 
white  races  sliall  have  sounded,  and  she  shall 
feel  herself  strong  enough  to  brave  the  entire 
world.  Until  then  she  will  content  herself  with 
the  role  of  commercial  invader — invading  without 
scruple. 

On  this  field  she  is  in  a  position  to  challenge 
the  strongest  with  even  greater  sense  of 
security,  and  there  is  none  fit  to  try  conclu- 
sions with  her.  Labour  costs  her  nothing, 
her  working-classes  are  intelligent,  industrious, 
artistic,  and  very  docile;  her  captains  of  in- 
dustry, taught  in  the  leading  schools  and  the 
greatest  establishments  in  Europe,  are  qualified 
to  lead  the  great  masses  just  as  her  generals 
were  qualified  to  lead  their  troops.  As  to  her 
plant,  it  is  as  good  as  her  armaments— it  is  all 
on  the  latest  model  and  above  criticism. 

Japan,  therefore,  is  in  a  better  condition  for 
producing  than  either  Europe  or  America,   and 

'9 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


as  the  Chinese  clientele  is  at  her  gate,  stretching 
out  its  hands  to  her,  and  ready  to  give  her  pre- 
ference over  all  competitors,  there  can  scarcely 
be  any  doubt  as  to  her  eventual  victory,  and  it  is 
probable  that  before  long  she  will  be  in  com- 
mand of  a  market  of  400,000,000  consumers. 

So  great  a  revolution  will  never  have  been 
witnessed  since  the  beginning  of  the  world,  and 
it  is  very  late  now  to  attempt  to  arrest  it.  And 
Europe  has  not  lacked  warnings — warnings  have 
come,  indeed,  from  every  direction.  In  France, 
the  Yellow  Peril  has  been  foretold  long  since  by 
M.  Edmond  Thery,  one  of  the  first  to  foretell  it 
at  all ;  and  M.  Thery  foresaw  only  the  economic 
peril  which  now  goes  hand  in  hand  with  the 
peril  to  national  existence.  He  foretold  the 
economic  all-powerfulness  of  this  over-ambitious 
race,  whose  growth  was  almost  visible  to  the 
naked  eye,  and  which  threatened  all  others  with 
commercial  extinction.  His  predictions  are  in  a 
fair  way  to  fulfilment,  unless  Europe,  awaking 
from  her  lethargy  and  forgetting  all  points  of 
difference,  succeeds  in  finding  some  way  of 
combining  for  the  protection  of  her  vantage 
points  in  Asia  and  of  presenting  an  insuperable 
barrier  to  the  yellow  invasion.  The  battle  is  not 
yet  lost;  but  mistakes  must  not  be  committed, 
and  time  must  not  be  lost. 

20 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 


IV 

Having  now  outlined  the  economic  chart 
of  the  world,  let  us  examine  it  a  little  more 
closely,  and  try  to  see  into  the  future.  It  is 
manifest  that  the  advent  upon  the  scene  of 
the  United  States  and  Japan,  pending  that  of 
Canada,  have  turned  completely  upside  down 
the  industrial  situation  in  this  old  Europe  of 
ours,  and  what  is  pitiable  is  that  Europe  does 
not  seem  to  realize  it.  She  orders  her  production 
as  though  nothing  had  changed  all  round  her,  as 
though  she  were  still  mistress  of  her  destinies. 

Yet  the  merest  common  sense  should  warn 
her  to  be  on  her  guard.  In  face  of  this  universal 
movement  towards  industrialism  which  has 
not  yet  said  its  last  word  * — this  world-wide 

*  Every  year  sees  some  new  nation  take  a  step  towards  its 
industrial  emancipation.  Mexico  is  now  advancing  with  great 
strides,  and  gaining  ground  every  day.  In  the  cotton  industry 
it  possesses  already  1,450,000  spindles,  and  25,000  looms  (?  )  ; 
in  1902  it  counted  already  more  than  6,000  industrial  establish- 
ments, giving  occupation  to  177,000  persons. 

Soon  Canada,  in  her  turn,  will  enter  upon  the  scene,  and  we 
may  look  for  an  expansion  in  her  case  analogous  to  that  of  the 
United  States  ;  a  land  which  produces  already  250,000  tons  of 
cast-iron  cannot  stay  its  progress. 

Even  the  seemingly  most  backward  European  nations  are 
beginning  now  to  fall  in  with  the  universal  tendency.  Thus 
Hungary,  essentially  an  agricultural  country,  is  manifesting  its 

21 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


competition  which  she  has  now  to  meet — she 
ought  to  see  that  her  ambitions  should  be  con- 
trolled. She  closes  her  eyes  to  this,  however, 
and  does  not  even  concentrate  her  energies 
upon  those  particular  articles  of  trade  in  which 
she  has  some  speciality,  and  the  market  for 
which  she  might  hope  to  retain. 

It  is  only  right  to  say  that  Germany  is 
primarily  responsible  for  this  onward  progress. 
Exalted  by  her  proud  position  in  the  world, 
carried  along  by  her  scientists  and  engineers 
and  financiers,  and  by  her  Government  as  well, 
it  was  she  who  gave  the  first  impulse  to  the 
movement.  The  other  nations  have  but  followed 
in  her  wake. 

Her  early  successes  were  dazzling,  and  the 
progress  she  made  in  a  few  years  was  marvellous. 
It  is  true  that  the  wealth  of  her  natural  resources, 
for  so  long  lying  fallow,  justified  her  ambitions. 
Her  coal  mines,  which  contain  reserves  as  great 
as,  if  not  greater  than,  those  of  England,  and 
her  iron  mines,  which  produce  excellent  material 
for  her  foundries,  enabled  her  to  establish 

intention  of  withdrawing  its  custom  as  a  purchaser  from  Austria, 
and  of  setting  up  industries  of  its  own.  With  the  help  of 
bonuses  granted  by  the  Hungarian  Government,  96  new 
manufactories  were  started  in  the  country  in  the  first  three 
months  of  1904.  Four  of  these  were  of  paper,  ten  of  chemical 
products  ;  eight  were  ironworks. 

22 


The  Growth  of  Manufacture 

metal  industries  that  competed  favourably  for 
all  the  markets  of  the  world.  She  has  added 
chemical  works  which  have  won  her  a  veritable 
monopoly  in  this  direction,  so  far  in  advance  are 
they  of  any  others  elsewhere ;  her  annual  trade 
in  chemical  goods  alone  amounts  to  the  enor- 
mous figure  of  1,400,000,000  marks. 

Its  total  exportation  increased  between  1903 
and  1904  by  over  30  per  cent* 

But  if  Germany  is  at  the  head  of  European 
nations  as  regards  the  enormous  total  of  her 
exports,  she  is  not  now  going  ahead  the  fastest. 
During  the  period  1890-1904,  the  exports  of 
Italy  increased  at  the  rate  of  63  per  cent, 
those  of  Russia  57  per  cent,  Belgium  43  per 
cent,  Switzerland  26  per  cent,  France  19  per 
cent,  England  15  per  cent,  Austria  13  per  cent 

What  is  the  meaning  of  this  unless  it  be 
that  the  productive  countries  of  Europe  have 
been  led,  one  after  another,  into  the  universal 
movement,  and  that  each  of  them,  having  first 
made  sure  of  a  home  market,  has  made  efforts 

*  In  the  metal  industry,  Germany  is  establishing  her' 
supremacy  more  and  more  in  place  of  that  of  England.  Between 
the  years  1892  and  1902,  Germany's  metal  exportation  for 
Europe,  England  included,  increased  by  72  per  cent.,  while 
that  of  England  for  Europe,  Germany  included,  decreased  by 
43  per  cent. 

23 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


I 


in  its  turn  to  poach  upon  the  clientele  of  the 
others  and  to  get  a  footing  on  foreign  markets  ? 

It  is  possible  to  see  clearly  now  the  course 
that  was  taken  by  the  great  economic  contest 
of  less  than  fifteen  years  ago  between  the 
strongest  nations.  Two  new  giants  stand  face 
to  face,  the  United  States  and  Germany,  and 
while  fighting  against  each  other,  they  fight 
together  against  England.  They  dump  down 
deluges  of  cheap  goods  in  their  efforts  to  snatch 
markets.  The  other  nations,  instead  of  avoiding 
danger  by  restricting  their  production,  keep 
producing  ever  more  and  more,  in  the  mad  hope 
of  crushing  their  competitors.  Each  moves 
forward  blindly;  the  one  question  they  never 
ask  themselves  is,  whether  there  be  consumers 
enough  to  justify  their  prodigality  of  produc- 
tion. This  is  thought  of  only  when  the  indus- 
trial crisis  has  begun  to  rage  everywhere,  and 
to  endanger  even  the  most  flourishing  industries. 

We  arrive,  then,  at  our  third  period,  into 
which  we  came  a  few  years  ago,  and  which  may, 
perhaps,  be  designated  as  the  period  of  over- 
production and  swollen  markets. 


THE 
INDUSTRIAL    CONGESTION 


CHAPTER  II 

THE   INDUSTRIAL  CONGESTION 

I 

"\  T  7E  do  no't  close  our  eyes  to  the  fact  that  the 
*  *  very  existence  of  this  evil  of  over- 
production is  denied.  We  are  asked  to  produce 
scientific  proofs  of  what  we  assert. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  scientific  proofs  are 
not  easily  forthcoming.  To  adduce  them  we 
should  need  to  know  the  exact  proportions 
borne  to  each  other  by  the  world's  supply  and 
demand.  As  yet  we  can  only  put  our  hand  upon 
statistics  serving  to  give  us  some  idea  of  the 
amount  of  the  supply. 

The  first  tables  of  statistics  to  which  we  may 
give  our  attention  are  those  setting  forth  the 
total  output  for  the  world  of  certain  industries 
which  may  be  regarded  as  a  barometer  to  all 
the  others — an  almost  exact  indicator  to  the 
development  of  those  industries  which  depend 
upon  them.  The  first  is  that  of  the  collieries  ; 
coal  constituting  the  motive  power  which  keeps 

27 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


industry  alive,  it  is  easy  to  deduce  from  the 
extent  of  the  output  the  degree  of  industrial 
development  that  is  attained. 

Upon   this   point,  as   upon   so  many  others, 

/  we    may  get    our  information    from   the   Office 

^International   cCAnvers,   which    was    established 

for  the  purpose  of  drawing  up  statistics  of  the 

production  of  industry  and  of  the  progress  of 

trade  all  over  the  world ;  we  shall  have  occasion 

to  borrow  more  than  once  from  its  interesting 

pages.     The  following  are  the  figures  it  gives 

for  coal : — 

1870  203,000,000  tons. 

1890  469,000,000  „ 

1900  694,000,000  „ 

1902  749,000,000  „ 

What  I  have  said  of  coal  may  also  be  said 
of  iron,  also  the  raw  material  of  countless 
industries. 

The  firm  of  James  Watson  and  Co.,  of  Glas- 
gow, has  recently  published  statistics  of  the  pro- 
duction of  iron  in  all  parts  of  the  world  in  1903. 
From  these  it  appears  that  the  amount  went 
up  from  39,000,000  tons  in  1901,  to  43,000,000  in 
1902,  and  nearly  46,000,000  in  1903;  an  increase 
of  15  per  cent,  in  three  years.  Germany's  output 
alone  increased  within  this  period  25  per  cent. 

These  years  mark  the  beginning  of  the 
28 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


tendency  towards  over-production.  The  excep- 
tional number  of  great  public  works  just  then 
under  construction  combined  with  the  develop- 
ment of  electric  railways  to  provoke  such  an 
immense  demand  that  the  workshops  could  not 
meet  it.  The  grave  error  was  then  made  of 
imagining  that  a  condition  of  things  which  was 
only  temporary  and  accidental  would  become 
permanent,  and  of  proceeding  to  produce  as 
though  the  general  consumption  had  become 
doubled. 

A  still  more  extraordinary  thing  came  about : 
the  industrial  revival  did  not  stop  short  at 
metallurgy,  which  alone  came  in  for  the  excep- 
tional demands.  The  other  industries,  infected 
by  example,  carried  away  by  the  high  price  of 
coal,  took  it  into  their  heads  that  the  con- 
sumption of  their  products  also  would  go  up 
tremendously,  and  that  we  were  on  the  verge 
of  an  unparalleled  season  of  permanent  good 
trade.  The  textile  industries  especially  began 
to  expand  everywhere,  new  factories  springing 
up  as  though  by  magic  out  of  the  earth.  The 
illusion  was  made  all  the  greater  because  our 
Exhibition  of  1900,  which  was  so  brilliant  and 
did  so  much  to  reveal  the  marvellous  progress 
of  technical  industry,  gave  a  fillip  to  consump- 
tion; it  was  merely  a  fillip,  unfortunately,  as 

29 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


was  only  too  evident  presently.  A  moment's 
reflection  ought  to  have  sufficed  to  make  us 
reflect  that  consumption,  especially  nowadays, 
does  not  make  these  leaps  forward,  and  that  if 
it  progresses  it  progresses  slowly;  and  that  if 
it  becomes  surfeited,  there  is  a  tendency  to 
relapse. 

The  result  of  the  imprudence  was  that  the 
great  industrial  countries,  finding  on  their  hands 
a  large  surplus  of  merchandise,  for  which  they 
had  no  use,  were  forced  to  export  it  at  any  price 
they  could  secure  in  order  to  avoid  such  a 
"slump"  internally,  accompanied  by  stoppage 
of  work,  as  might  give  rise  to  an  alarming  social 
crisis. 


II 

This  is  the  only  explanation  that  can  be 
given  of  the  quite  abnormal  exports  which  have 
marked  the  last  few  years,  and  which  constitute 
an  economic  event  deserving  of  the  most  serious 
attention,  for  it  affects  all  countries  equally. 
There  is  no  surer  indication  of  the  importance 
of  the  production  of  a  country  and  of  its 
economic  development,  especially  in  the  case  of 
great  industries  such  as  those  of  metals  and 
textiles,  than  these  sudden  increases  in  the 

30 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


amount  of  their  exports.  For  in  these  cases 
what  do  the  exports  consist  of  if  not  of  the 
surplus  stock  for  which  no  market  can  be  found 
at  home,  and  which  must  therefore  be  disposed 
of  abroad  ? 

I  do  not  mean  that  exports  are  always  and 
everywhere  synonymous  with  over-production. 
There  are  normal  exports  consisting  of  merchan- 
dise provided  specially  for  the  foreigner.  Until 
recently  these  were  the  only  kind  of  exports  at 
all.  That  was  as  long  as  we  were  still  working 
foreign  markets  which  bid  against  each  other  for 
certain  classes  of  goods  to  such  an  extent  that 
the  demand  often  exceeded  the  supply. 

Things  have  been  changing,  however,  and 
now  the  great  industries  regard  exports  as 
merely  a  method  of  disposing  of  their  surplus 
stocks ;  when  the  home  market  is  active  and 
buying  largely  they  diminish  or  suspend  their 
exports,  as  we  have  seen  of  late  years  in  the 
United  States,  where  the  metal  industry,  finding 
its  enormous  output  entirely  taken  up  for  the 
construction  of  railways,  etc.,  ceased  exporting 
altogether  for  a  time  until  the  home  demand  had 
been  satisfied. 

The  distinguishing  mark  of  these  exports, 
generally  speaking,  is  the  fact  that  they  are 
effected  in  great  bulk  and  at  very  low  prices — 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


"liquidation  exports"  they  have  been  desig- 
nated not  incorrectly.  It  is  notorious  that  of 
recent  years  exports  of  this  kind  have  been  the 
chief  figure  in  the  commercial  statistics  of  the 
great  producing  countries.* 

If  only  one  market,  or  only  a  few  markets, 
were  glutted  at  a  time,  the  economic  equilibrium 
would  soon  be  re-established  by  the  flow  of  the 
surplus  output  upon  the  markets  in  good  condi- 
tion ;  but  it  has  sometimes  happened  that  all  the 
great  markets  have  been  glutted  simultaneously. 
No  need  to  describe  the  prodigious  effort,  and 
the  enormous  sacrifices  made  by  each  country 
to  get  the  better  of  the  others.  Trusts,  cartels, 
industrial  unions,  have  been  found  indispen- 
sable, if  superficial,  methods  of  saving  the 
situation. 

Having,  then,  established  the  truth  of  the 
fact,  that  the  advance  in  exports  is  a  sure  index 
to  the  home  production  of  a  country,  let  us  see 

*  The  very  nature  of  these  exports  proves  the  truth  of  what 
is  said  above.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  they  consist  chiefly  of 
merchandise  universally  in  demand  and  such  as  most  countries 
can  produce  for  themselves,  and  that  they  go  to  markets  which 
could  quite  well  dispense  with  them.  There  can,  for  instance, 
be  no  doubt  that  when  Germany  sends  her  cast-iron  to  Belgium, 
Great  Britain,  and  the  United  States,  it  is  not  because  these 
countries  are  unable  to  produce  enough  for  their  own  use,  it  is 
because  the  German  market  is  glutted  and  must  be  eased  at 
any  price. 

32 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


now  what  our  commercial  statistics  have  to  tell 
us  upon  this  point.  Thanks  to  the  Antwerp 
Statistical  Bureau,  we  have  the  advantage  of 
being  put  in  possession  of  them  all  for  the  whole 
world,  and  are  able,  therefore,  to  form  a  precise 
notion  of  the  course  of  production  during  the 
last  few  years.  Here  are  the  figures  for  the 
entire  world  for  the  years  1897,  1902,  and  1903. 

Francs. 

Total  Exports  in  1897        ...        46,000,000,000 
„  „  1902        ...        56,000,000,000 

„  „  1903  ...  6o,OOOjOOO,OOO 

If  we  bear  in  mind  the  fact  that  the  year  1902 
was  one  of  the  most  calamitous  for  industries 
of  every  description,  the  significance  of  this 
advance  of  4000  millions  in  a  single  year  will 
come  home  to  us ;  *  it  enables  us  to  form  some 
notion  of  the  increase  of  the  world's  production, 
but  only  a  faint  and  quite  inadequate  notion. 
All  it  tells  us  of  is  the  surplus  stock  which 
could  not  be  utilized.  It  gives  us  no  idea  of 
the  increase  in  the  home  production  consumed 
internally.  This  must  have  exceeded  very 

*  For  Europe  alone  the  total  exports,  amounting  in  1875  to 
only  22,000,000,000  francs,  had  reached  34,000,000,000  in  1902— 
an  increase  of  12,000,000,000  in  twenty-seven  years  ;  but  in  1903 
there  was  a  further  advance  to  36,800,000,000.  In  the  light  of 
these  figures,  the  industrial  crisis  does  not  seem  surprising. 

33  D 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


considerably  the'  records  of  previous  years, 
judging  from  the  statistics  of  certain  individual 
industries. 

I  ought  not  to  seem  to  minimize,  however, 
the  total  increase  of  14,000  millions  for  the 
seven  years  —  an  increase  representing  the 
growth  of  what  I  may  call  the  floating  world's 
merchandise,  inasmuch  as  it  floats  about  in 
search  of  an  outlet. 

No  one  would  venture  to  contend  seriously 
that  in  this  short  space  of  time  the  normal  con- 
sumption of  the  world  had  developed  in  propor- 
tion. The  increase  in  the  world's  population, 
which  is  sometimes  invoked  by  way  of  ex- 
plaining matters,  does  not  warrant  any  such 
theory ;  its  rate  of  advance  is  infinitely  more 
slow  and  regular.* 

Nor  can  it  be  maintained  that  the  advance  in 
general  prosperity — an  important  factor  in  regard 
to  consumption — suffices  to  explain  so  rapid  a 
rise  in  production.  Prosperity  also  progresses 
regularly,  not  by  leaps  and  bounds;  to  satisfy 
ourselves  of  this,  we  have  but  to  examine  the 
statistics  of  the  wealth  of  the  different  nations. 

*  According  to  the  statistics,  which  seem  to  be  most  carefully 
compiled  and  most  trustworthy  in  every  way — those  made  out 
by  our  great  French  statistician,  M.  Levasseur — the  popu- 
lation of  the  world  in  1878,  was  1,439,600,000;  in  1890, 
1,483,000,000 ;  in  1904,  1,523,000,000. 

34 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


Nowhere  except  in  the  United  States*  can  we 
find  record  of  any  such  extraordinary  advance 
in  the  condition  of  the  well-to-do;  as  for  the 
worker,  he  is  doubtless  better  housed  and  better 
fed  than  formerly,  and  able  to  afford  pleasures 
unknown  to  his  class  fifty  years  ago,  but  in  1900 
he  was  in  very  much  the  same  state  that  he  is 
in  now. 

Therefore  no  other  explanation  can  be  given 
of  the  extraordinary  increase  of  exports  than 
the  fact  that  most  of  the  markets  are  glutted 
as  a  result  of  over-production. 

Ill 

The  Germans  recognize  this  fact,  and  we 
must  do  them  the  justice  of  admitting  that,  after 
being  one  of  the  chief  causes  of  the  industrial 
crisis,  they  are  now  seeking  to  repair  their  fault. 
As  soon  as  they  realized  that  their  excess  of 
production  threatened  them  with  an  imminent 
crash,  they  made  efforts  to  save  their  market  by 
empirical  methods :  they  organized  their  cartels 
with  the  utmost  possible  astuteness. 

Thanks  to  their  tariff,  which  enabled  them  to 

*  The  wealth  of  the  United  States,  estimated  at  42,000,000,000 
dollars  in  1880,  rose,  in  1900  to  94,000,000,000 ;  this  works  out 
at  1235  dollars  a  head  instead  of  850. 

35 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


raise  their  prices  for  their  home  market,  they 
were  able  to  levy  " drawbacks"  which  for  a  certain 
time  gave  them  an  incontestable  advantage  over 
all  their  rivals.  The  mechanism  of  "  dumping  " 
is  too  well  known  to  need  any  enlargement  upon 
it  here,  and  a  discussion  of  this  subject  would 
take  us  too  far.  I  confine  myself,  therefore, 
to  adducing  the  phenomenon  of  these  cartels* 
as  a  striking  proof  of  the  excess  of  production 
in  Germany. 

But  the  German  manufacturers,  who  are 
essentially  practical  men,  realized  presently  that 
this  kind  of  wholesale  pouring  out  of  exports 
was  only  a  temporary  expedient,  and  not  a 
remedy.  It  relieved  the  glutted  market  for  the 
time  being,  but  if  the  over-production  were  to 
be  kept  up,  if  stocks  were  to  be  replenished 
as  quickly  as  they  were  thus  disposed  of,  the 
evil  would  become  endemic,  and  there  would 
be  no  issue  to  the  crisis. 

Thus  they  were  brought  to  the  conclusion 
that,  sooner  or  later,  when  the  home  market 

*  It  is  thanks  to  these  cartels,  as  I  have  said,  that  the  ex- 
ports of  iron  from  Germany  for  Europe  alone  have  increased 
to  72  per  cent.,  while  those  from  England  have  decreased  by 
43  per  cent.  The  German  exports  to  other  countries,  not 
including  the  United  States,  have  increased  from  1,544,000  tons 
in  1897  to  2,000,000  tons  in  1902. 

36 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


became  congested  a  limit  must  be  put  upon  pro- 
duction.   All  other  measures  are  mere  palliatives. 

In  order  to  effect  this,  they  again  had  recourse 
to  cartels  for  the  regulation  of  production, 
reducing  it  to  a  certain  fixed  degree,  and  distri- 
buting it  among  the  various  syndicated  establish- 
ments. This  division  is  carried  out  with  perfect 
equity  according  to  the  productive  capacity  of 
the  factories  and  to  the  state  of  the  market ; 
each  manufacturer  knows  in  advance  the  limit 
assigned  to  him,  and  he  has  no  temptation  to 
go  beyond  it. 

German  industry  has  just  taken  a  still  more 
daring  step  in  this  direction—a  step  which  no 
one  couldihave  foreseen.  Not  content  with  thus 
checking  manufacturers  at  home,  it  has  quite 
recently  put  forward  proposals  for  an  under- 
standing with  its  most  redoubtable  rivals  abroad. 

This  is  no  news.  Every  one  is  aware  to-day 
that  the  German  steel  cartel  (Stahlwerkband)  has 
invited  the  English,  Belgian,  and  French  manu- 
facturers of  steel  rails,  girders,  etc.,  to  come  to 
an  understanding  by  which  each  nation  con- 
tracting would  limit  its  participation  in  the 
exporting  of  these  articles  to  a  certain  fixed 
figure,  the  factories  of  each  country  preserv- 
ing, of  course,  their  individuality  and  inde- 
pendence. The  understanding  has  now  been 

37 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


definitely   come  to,   and  it   is   believed   that   it 
will  presently  take  in  the  United  States. 

This  new  species  of  combination  is  certainly 
one  of  the  most  important  economical  events 
of  the  last  few  years.  There  is  no  need  to 
inquire  as  to  the  results  which  it  has  had  upon 
the  industries  affected,  and  which  cannot  but 
be  favourable.  If  we  have  devoted  so  much 
attention  to  it,  that  is  because  it  supplies  us 
with  the  strongest  argument  in  support  of  our 
thesis. 

This  entente,  to  which  the  most  powerful 
industrial  nations  in  the  world  found  themselves 
obliged  to  come,  is  surely  the  most  striking 
proof  of  the  general  state  of  over-production. 
It  is  a  recognition  that  there  is  no  longer 
room  for  every  one  on  the  export  markets,  and 
that  the  wisest  course  is  to  come  to  terms 
and  to  reduce  the  supply  of  merchandise  to  the 
demand. 

From  all  this  we  are  forced  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  upward  tendency  of  industrial  produc- 
tion will  soon  cease,  and  that  production  will 
be  kept  afterwards  within  the  limits  imposed  by 
consumption. 

It  is  because  we  foresee  this  inevitable 
evolution  that  we  wish  to  help  it  by  preparing 
the  passage  from  one  state  of  things  to  another, 

38 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


and  by  seeking  means  to  cope  with  the 
untoward  effects  it  may  bring  about  in  other 
fields  of  labour. 


IV 

But,  as  we  have  said,  our  thesis  is  challenged 
by  many  people,  and  we  must  pass  under  review 
the  objections  they  advance. 

First  of  all,  there  are  the  persistent  optimists 
who  are  not  to  be  alarmed  by  anything,  and 
attribute  all  crises  to  the  nature  of  the  laws  of 
economy,  or  who  rather  deny  the  existence  of 
any  crisis  at  all,  and  hold  that  over-production 
is  merely  the  bogey  of  ill-ordered  minds.  The 
proof  that  it  is  a  phantom,  they  tell  us,  is  to  be 
found  in  the  fact  that  everything  that  is  pro- 
duced is  sold,  and  that  there  are  purchasers 
always  for  everything;  there  has  never  been  a 
case  of  merchandise  being  thrown  into  the  sea 
for  lack  of  buyers. 

Doubtless,  the  producers  will  always  prefer 
to  sell  cheap  rather  than  not  at  all,  but  it  is  also 
certain  that  consumers  are  not  always  to  be 
tempted  by  mere  cheapness.  It  is  upon  this 
disastrous  delusion  that  rest  the  wholesale  ex- 
ports, which  have  been  becoming  so  general.  If 
industry  is  to  be  carried  on  upon  such  lines,  so 

39 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


be  it;  but  don't  let  it  be  denied  that  over-pro- 
duction exists,  for  these  low  prices  are  proof 
positive  of  the  fact. 

When  production  is  normal  and  in  accordance 
with  the  needs  of  consumption,  the  consumer 
runs  after  the  producer,  who  is  master  of  the 
situation,  and  sees  to  it  that  the  price  paid  shall 
yield  him  his  due  profits.  When,  on  the  contrary, 
it  exceeds  the  needs  of  consumption,  it  is  the 
producer  who  has  to  run  after  the  consumer, 
offering  his  goods  at  a  reduction,  in  order  to 
have  the  advantage  of  his  competitors;  under- 
selling becomes  a  regular  thing,  trade  goes  to 
the  bad.  This  is  all  inevitable — an  economic 
law  which  no  one  can  hope  to  escape. 

And  this  law  has  been  manifesting  itself  now 
for  twenty  years  with  painful  persistency ;  it  has 
been  set  out  in  relief  by  a  great  English  statis- 
tician, Mr.  Sauerbeck,  who  for  thirty  years  and 
more  has  been  devoting  his  powerful  intellect 
to  a  study  of  the  oscillation  of  the  different 
markets,  noting  their  movements  day  by  day, 
and  embodying  the  result  of  his  observations 
in  formulae  of  great  interest  and  the  utmost 
precision. 

In  order  to  put  his  conclusions  intelligibly 
before  the  general  public,  scarcely  an  courant 
with  such  abstruse  problems,  he  has  selected 

40 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


in  his  classification  of  merchandise  those  which 
do  the  biggest  trade  by  reason  of  their  uni- 
versal utility.  He  takes  forty-five  of  these,  and 
begins  by  establishing  their  average  price  for 
the  period  1869  to  1877 — the  period  preceding 
the  great  industrial  movement  of  the  end  of  the 
nineteenth  century.  He  makes  this  average 
price  the  basis  of  his  further  calculations,  by 
representing  it  by  the  figure  100,  above  and 
below  which  he  watches  the  rise  and  fall  of  the 
value  of  these  goods  month  by  month  and  year 
by  year. 

If  you  want  to  take  note  of  the  general  trend 
of  prices  since  1877,  you  need  only  take  the 
extreme  figures,  the  first  figure  of  all,  the  average 
between  1869  and  1877,  and  the  figure  for  1904. 
There  is  a  fall  there  from  100  to  70 — a  decrease 
of  30  per  cent.  It  is  only  right  to  point  out  that, 
in  the  interval,  prices  have  varied  considerably, 
going  down  in  1896  and  1897  to  61  and  62,  rising 
in  1900  to  75  and  going  down  again  to  69  in  1902 
and  1903.  But  these  oscillations  themselves  do 
but  confirm  the  general  law  that  we  are  en- 
deavouring to  establish;  on  the  one  hand,  the 
constant  downward  tendency  for  the  last  twenty- 
five  years,  on  the  other  hand,  the  coincidence  of 
low  prices  with  over-production. 

But,  it  will  be  said,  you  are  overlooking  two 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


essential  factors,  which  explain  the  inevitable 
lowering  of  prices,  quite  apart  from  any  question 
of  over-production:  the  growing  cheapness  of 
raw  material  and  the  progress  of  machinery. 
We  admit  the  existence  of  both  these  factors. 
No  one  could  deny  what  is  so  manifest.  But 
they  are  not  enough  to  account  for  the  abnor- 
mally low  prices.  The  extent  to  which  they 
affect  the  cost  price  of  industries  is  easily  calcu- 
lated. Every  manufacturer  knows  exactly  how 
much  difference  is  made  for  him  by  a  reduction 
in  the  cost  of  raw  material — the  difference  is  not 
so  great  as  we  are  asked  to  believe,  except 
perhaps  in  the  case  of  cotton ;  he  knows  also 
what  saving  is  involved  in  the  improvements  of 
machinery,  and  when  he  complains  of  prices 
becoming  low,  he  is,  of  course,  allowing  fully  for 
these  economies.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  to  be 
remembered  that  if  raw  material  has  become 
cheaper,  manual  labour  in  most  industries  has 
become  a  good  deal  dearer. 

If  you  ask  a  mill-owner  or  a  weaver,  for 
instance,  to  tell  you  the  cost  price  of  his  goods 
and  the  price  at  which  he  has  sold  them  in  1897 
and  this  year,  he  will  have  no  difficulty  in  con- 
vincing you  that  his  sale  price  has  decreased  to 
an  infinitely  greater  degree  than  his  cost  price. 
The  calculation  has  been  recently  worked  out 

42 


The  Industrial  Congestion 


very  carefully  by  the  syndicate  of  the  Textiles 
Union  for  "  Warp  28  " — the  classical  number  for 
cotton;  in  order  to  place  its  statement  outside 
the  realms  of  discussion,  the  Union  has  separated 
the  working  expenses  from  the  price  of  the  raw 
material,  and  records  that  the  margin  left  to  the 
manufacturer  on  his  sale  price  for  the  working 
expenses  went  down  from  i  franc  56  centimes 
in  1865  to  60  centimes  in  1903. 

What  has  caused  the  present  crisis  for  a  great 
many  industries  is  not  small  profits,  but  sale 
below  cost  value,  forcing  them  year  after  year 
to  make  encroachments  upon  capital.  The  crisis 
must  last  until  a  balance  has  been  struck  between 
supply  and  demand,  and  this  is  only  to  be 
brought  about  by  a  systematic  restriction  of 
production  in  accordance  with  the  needs  of  the 
different  markets.  Willy-nilly,  we  must  come  to 
this  restriction  sooner  or  later,  in  some  shape  or 
form,  and  the  country  that  attempts  it  first  will 
be  well  repaid. 


43 


FRANCE.    IMPROVEMENTS   IN 
MACHINERY 


CHAPTER  III 

FRANCE.      IMPROVEMENTS  IN   MACHINERY 
I 

TJAVING  made  the  circuit  of  the  world,  let 
•*-  -*-  us  turn  our  attention  now  to  France,  to 
appreciate  whose  present  economical  status  this 
general  survey  was  necessary.  Her  relations 
with  all  the  other  countries  make  her  part  and 
parcel  of  the  universal  movement. 

In  common  with  the  other  nations,  France 
has  seen  old-established  and  valuable  markets 
closed  to  her,  according  as  her  customers  in 
different  regions  have  developed,  and  have 
established  industries  in  rivalry  with  hers. 
Yet  other  rnarkets  have  been  snatched  from 
her  by  stronger  rivals — for  instance,  those  in 
South  America,  which,  in  part,  she  has  seen 
pass  into  the  hands  of  Germany  and  of  the 
United  States. 

Thus  her  economical  situation  might  have 
become  very  serious,  and  have  resulted  in  the 
wrecking  of  her  chief  industries,  if  her  colonies 

47 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


had  not  come  into  existence  in  time  to  supply 
fresh  markets.  The  colonial  policy  of  France 
was  her  salvation,  and  the  country  can  never  be 
too  grateful  to  Jules  Ferry  for  his  foresight  in 
thus  saving  her  from  commercial  ruin. 

It  must  be  said,  however,  for  the  commercial 
classes  in  France,  that  they  are  by  nature  more 
prudent  than  those  of  other  countries,  though 
some  of  our  industries  have  of  recent  years 
fallen  into  the  mistake  of  over-production. 

Let  us  take  note  of  certain  significant  data 
which  are  at  hand.  It  is  now  some  years  since 
M.  Edmond  Thery,  that  eminent  economist, 
drew  attention  to  the  danger  of  over-production 
in  a  preface  he  contributed  to  M.  Francis  Laur's 
informing  work  upon  monopolies.  He  pointed 
out  very  justly  that,  in  order  to  form  an  estimate 
of  the  extent  of  our  industries,  it  was  quite 
unnecessary  to  make  out  an  elaborate  table  of 
statistics,  and  that  there  was  a  much  simpler 
and  easier  way  of  arriving  at  the  facts  :  namely, 
that  of  ascertaining  the  total  horse-power 
employed  in  our  manufactories.  This  figure 
indicates  as  nearly  as  possible  the  importance 
and  extent  of  our  entire  industrial  machinery, 
and  in  consequence  of  our  production. 

Recognizing  the   truth  of  this,  let   us  leave 
on  one  side  the  figures  adduced  by  M.  Thery, 

48 


France,    Improvements  in  Machinery 

which  are  now  some  years  out  of  date,  and  let 
us  apply  his  method  to  the  data  furnished  by 
the  latest  statistics  issued  by  our  Ministry  of 
Commerce. 

The  horse-power  in  use  in  French  industries 
in  1890  amounted  to  863,000;  ten  years  later,  in 
1900,  the  figure  is  more  than  doubled,  1,791,000. 
Since  1890,  there  has  been  a  still  higher  rate 
of  increase,  the  figure  having  reached  1,994,989 
in  1902.  Among  the  industries  that  have 
developed  most  speedily  is  that  of  metals, 
which  employed  in  1890  only  167,584  horse- 
power, while  in  1902  it  employs  354,856.  The 
increase  shown  by  the  textile  industries  is 
greater  still,  the  figure  having  been  172,999  in 
1890  and  434,529  in  1902. 

To  give  life  to  these  cold  facts,  we  should 
have  recourse  to  M.  Thery's  method,  and  calcu- 
late, as  he  does,  the  amount  of  manual  labour 
of  which  all  tfiis  machinery  takes  the  place ;  a 
simple  calculation,  given  the  principle  accepted 
by  experts,  that  one-horse  power  is  the  equiva- 
lent of  the  labour  of  twenty-one  men.  Thus  it 
is  that  M.  Thery  comes  finally  to  the  conclusion 
that,  as  regards  production  we  are  in  the  same 
position  as  though  our  working-class  population 
had  tripled,  and  as  though  every  French  citizen 
had  at  his  service  three  iron  slaves,  the  upkeep 

49  E 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


of  which  does  not  cost  more  than  five  centimes 
a  day. 

Let  us  now  look  a  little  more  closely  into  the 
condition  of  some  of  our  great  industries,  taking 
from  the  Statistical  Annual  of  the  Ministry  of 
Commerce  particulars  of  other  kinds,  so  as  to 
give  its  full  value  to  the  argument  already 
drawn  from  the  horse-power  figures. 


II 

Let  us  take  the  cotton  industry,  for  instance  ; 
it  is  an  easy  matter  to  follow  its  development. 
The  raw  material  comes  entirely  from  abroad, 
and  our  custom-house  statistics  tell  in  exactly 
what  quantities.  The  total  amount  in  1890 
was  2,500,000  cwt,  excluding  what  was  re- 
exported;  in  1900,  the  figure  increased  to 
3,142,000  cwt.  Then  comes  an  almost  incredible 
rise  to  4,376,000  cwt.  in  1903.  If  in  1904  the 
figure  came  down  to  2,500,000,  that  is  due 
entirely  to  the  fact  that  the  price  of  cotton  had 
doubled. 

Who  would  venture  to  declare  that  this 
increase  was  normal  and  in  response  to  the 
demand?  No  doubt,  the  uses  oi  cotton  are 
being  extended  unceasingly — it  is  used  in 

50 


France*    Improvements  in  Machinery 

everything  nowadays,  and  is  often  turned  to 
accounts  for  which  it  is  not  suited— but  this 
has  been  true  for  some  considerable  time  past, 
and  is  not  the  outcome  merely  of  the  last  few 
years. 

When  we  see  the  number  of  spindles  in- 
creasing in  five  years— between  1898  and  1903 
— from  5,300,000  to  6,150,000;  and  that  of  looms, 
in  the  eastern  district  alone,  from  46,000  to 
54,000,  it  is  difficult  to  believe  that  the  normal 
consumption  has  increased  in  the  same  degree. 
The  truth  is,  that  many  of  those  who  manu- 
factured at  so  feverish  a  rate  in  1900  were  not 
thinking  of  the  consumption  at  all.  All  they 
thought  of  was  the  high  prices  then  in  vogue 
— prices  wfrfch  they  quite  wrongly  took  as 
heralds  of  a  permanent  revival,  and  of  the 
beginning  of  a  new  era  of  prosperity.  If  they 
had  only  looked  round  them  attentively,  they 
would  have  been  warned  by  several  other 
symptoms  that  their  output  was  more  than 
sufficient.  In  a  kindred  industry,  that  of  wool, 
there  had  come  about  a  state  of  things  from 
which  cotton  was  bound  to  suffer. 

We  all  know  through  what  difficulties  the 
woollen  industry  has  had  to  pass,  and  how 
genius  alone  has  been  able  to  save  it.  Together 
with  the  silk  industry,  it  constituted  one  of  our 


-  — - 

The  Return  to  the  Land 

principal  exports,  and  therefore  it  was  affected 
more  than  others  by  the  great  movement  which 
we  have  already  analysed  and  which  impelled 
the  majority  of  nations  to  establish  at  home  all 
those  branches  of  manufactory  for  which  they 
were  dependent  upon  the  foreigner.  Wool 
could  not  escape  from  their  general  law  any 
more  than  silk  could.  In  succession,  Germany, 
the  United  States,  Austria,  Russia,  and  Spain 
were  to  be  found  developing  their  production 
of  wool  and  depriving  the  French  industry  of 
a  great  part  of  its  market.  France  had  just 
won  a  footing  for  its  woollen  goods  in  Japan, 
when  that  country  also  began  to  prepare  to 
do  without  us.* 

In  so  critical  a  situation,  what  should  we 
have  done  in  order  to  come  to  the  assistance  of 
one  of  our  great  national  industries?  Our  first 
duty  was  to  seek  all  possible  means  of  enabling 
her  to  fight  for  the  foreign  markets,  and,  to  this 
end,  of  diminishing  her  cost  of  production. 

We  did  just  the  opposite — we  were  at  pains 
to  increase  in  every  way  the  burdens  weighing 

*  Japan  has  just  constructed  three  great  manufactories  for 
muslin — our  most  important  item.  One  of  these  is  at  Osaka, 
the  other  two  are  at  Tokio.  If  we  remember  that  the  working- 
day  in  Japan  is  of  fifteen  or  even  seventeen  hours,  at  an  average 
wage  of  25  centimes  a  day,  we  can  form  some  idea  of  the 
industrial  struggle  we  must  soon  encounter. 

52 


France,    Improvements  in  Machinery 

upon  the  industry.  Our  import  duties  are  the 
highest  known,  and  we  keep  on  raising  them 
continually.*  New  restrictions,  new  trammels, 
involving  loss  of  time  and  of  money,  are  being 
invented  daily  by  our  Ministry  of  Commerce. 
Finally,  we  reduced  the  working-day  by  two 
hours,  thus^giving  an  enormous  advantage  to 
our  rivals  without  asking  for  anything  in  return. 

While  all  other  countries  are  doing  whatever 
lies  in  their  power  to  encourage  and  support 
their  national  industries,  we  seem  to  take  a 
malign  pleasure  in  fettering  ours.  Our  idea  of 
benefiting  the  working-man  seems  to  consist 
of  providing  that  he  shall  work  as  little  as 
possible,  t 

In  the  woollen  industry,  numerous  manu- 
factories have  been  closed :  nineteen  at  Rheims  ; 
thirty-nine  at  Fourmies ;  three  at  Tourcoing  ; 
others  at  St.  Quentin. 

These  closings  have  had  a  quite  unforeseen 

*  The  Socie*t£  de  1'Industrie  Lainiere  de  Fourmies  satisfied 
a  Parliamentary  commission  that  in  France  taxes  upon  wool 
are  three  times  higher  than  they  are  in  Belgium.  In  the  same 
way,  the  Union  des  Industries  Textiles  has  established  the  fact 
that  the  trade  has  to  pay  12  francs  in  taxation  in  France,  while 
in  England  it  pays  only  9.06. 

t  The  Italian  Government,  wishing  to  develop  the  industry 
in  the  south  of  Italy,  has  granted  new  establishments  immunity 
from  all  taxation  for  ten  years,  and  has  permitted  them  to 
import  all  other  necessary  plant  free  of  duty. 

53 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


issue,  which  leads  us  back  to  what  we  were 
saying  about  the  cotton  industry.  Certain 
woollen  manufactories,  wishing  to  fight  to  the 
last  against  evil  fortune,  have  been  transformed 
into  cotton  manufactories  rather  than  be 
abandoned  altogether.  In  this  way  the  pro- 
duction of  cotton  has  been  started  at  Fourmies 
and  considerably  increased  at  St.  Quentin.  It 
was  necessary  to  draw  attention  to  these  facts 
because  they  show  that  there  was  no  need  to 
construct  new  looms. 

The  condition  of  the  cotton  industry  in 
France  was  to  become  the  more  grave  in  that  it 
has  been  developing  extraordinarily  elsewhere 
of  recent  years,  and  that  our  rivals,  not  satisfied 
with  providing  for  their  own  needs,  have  passed 
from  the  defensive  to  the  offensive,  and  have 
made  inroads  on  all  the  markets  which  formerly 
we  supplied.* 

*  Germany  has  increased  her  export  of  cotton  by  30  per  cent., 
Belgium  by  20  per  cent.  In  the  United  States,  270  new  cotton 
factories  have  been  established  since  1900,  and  the  number  of 
spindles  has  gone  from  15,000,000  to  21,000,000.  Italy  has 
made  giant's  strides  within  a  few  years.  Her  exports  of  cotton 
goods,  which  amounted  in  1887  to  only  620,000  kilos,  increased 
to  12,350,000  in  1900— an  increase  of  1892  per  cent.!  She  is  on 
the  way  to  undermining  British  influence  in  Asia  Minor,  as  is 
evidenced  by  the  growth  of  her  imports  at  Aleppo. 

As  for  the  United  States,  they  have  increased,  their  textile 
industries  enormously  between  1890  and  1900.  Thus  cotton 

54 


France*    Improvements  in  Machinery 

N  And  what  we  have  said  of  woollen  and  cotton 
goods  can  be  said  equally  of  our  silk,  which 
formerly  was  mistress  of  the  whole  world,  but 
which  now  is  having  inroads  made  on  it  every- 
where, in  Germany,  Italy,  Switzerland,  the 
United  States,  and  which  has  begun  to  find  a 
new  and  still  more  formidable  competitor  in 
Japan.* 

If  we  pass  now  to  the  metal  industry,  we 
shall  find  that  it  also  has  passed  through  the 
same  illusions  and  the  same  ordeals.  It  also 
was  misled  by  the  rise  in  prices  and  the  large 
demands  caused  by  the  great  public  works  and 
by  the  Paris  Exhibition.  It  also  went  beyond 
the  limit,  as  is  evidenced  by  the  increase  in  the 
number  of  blast  furnaces,  and  now  it  is  obliged 
to  mark  time  like  the  rest.  What  saved  it  and 
enabled  it  to  extricate  itself  from  the  crisis  more 

spindles  have  gone  from  14,000,000  to  15,000,000  ;  looms  from 
324,000  to  490,000  ;  looms  for  wool  from  67,000  to  80,000  ;  those 
for  hosiery  from  36,00010  75,000  ;  spindles  for  silk  from  718,000 
to  1,426,000,  and  those  for  looms  for  silk  from  20,000  to 
48,000. 

*  The  amount  of  raw  material  taken  by  the  different 
countries  enables  us  to  realize  the  progress  made  by  our 
competitors  ;  the  increase  in  the  consumption  of  silk,  which  has 
been  31  per  cent,  for  the  other  European  nations,  83  per  cent, 
for  the  United  States,  has  only  been  10  per  cent,  for  France. 
Since  1898,  the  production  in  the  United  States  has  been 
greater  than  with  us.  Their  production  in  1898  was  237,000 
kilos  ;  now  it  is  1,850,000. 

55 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


speedily  than  certain  other  industries,  was  the 
fact  that  it  had  the  courage  to  reduce  its  output 
the  moment  it  discovered  that  it  had  been  going 
ahead  too  fast. 

I  have  enlarged  upon  these  points  because 
of  the  great  importance  of  the  industries 
concerned,  employing  as  they  do  a  very 
considerable  number  of  workmen — 500,000  in 
metallurgy,  800,000  in  textiles — and  because  it 
is  these  industries  that  have  developed  most, 
and  that  for  several  years  past  have  been  most 
affected  by  the  general  condition  of  surfeit. 

There  are,  however,  very  few  industries  that 
have  not  been  tempted  into  over-production  of 
late.  Every  one  is  anxious  nowadays  to  make 
his  fortune,  and  business  is  generally  regarded 
as  the  shortest  way  towards  the  goal.  New- 
comers neglect  to  ascertain  whether  there  be 
room  for  them.  They  do  not  realize  how  things 
have  changed.  They  have  heard  how  people 
have  succeeded  in  the  past  beyond  all  hope,  and 
they  have  no  doubt  that  they  will  have  the  same 
good  fortune.  The  temptation  is  all  the  more 
strong  in  that  there  are  no  limitations  to 
industrial  production;  herein  it  differs  pro- 
foundly from  agriculture,  which  is  perforce  kept 
within  the  bounds  of  the  cultivable  land.  In 
business  the  field  of  activity  is  limitless.  You 

56 


France.    Improvements  in  Machinery 

can  build  factories  and  instal  looms  and  spindles 
to  any  degree  you  will. 

What  is  even  more  dangerous  than  the 
temptation  to  build  is  that  temptation  to  expand 
which  comes  to  every  one  in  business,  and  which 
seems  to  point  in  the  direction  of  his  best 
interests.  For  the  more  he  produces,  the  more 
he  reduces  his  general  expenses,  the  more  he 
lowers  his  net  costs,  the  greater  his  advantages 
over  his  competitors :  herein  lurks  a  perpetual 
temptation  to  the  manufacturer  against  which 
even  the  most  prudent — even  those  most  op- 
posed in  theory  to  over-production — are  not 
proof.  Industrial  pressure,  this  new  pheno- 
menon that  to-day  is  assuming  proportions  that 
begin  to  be  disquieting,  is  to  be  attributed  to 
no  other  cause  than  this.  Every  one  hopes  to 
crush  his  rivals  by  the  mass  of  his  production, 
and  to  remain  a  solitary  victor  on  the  stricken 
field. 


Ill 

Upon  this  theme  we  have  now  to  face  the 
views  of  the  foes  of  our  economical  doctrine, 
pointing  in  triumph  at  all  this  over-production 
and  exclaiming :  "  There  is  the  fatal,  inevitable 
outcome  of  protection.  Over-production  is  its 

57 

-'"" ~' 

>F  TH£      ' 

'CT5,rM-*-».r       \S 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


natural  fruit,  and  protectionists  have  no  right  to 
complain  about  it :  they  are  but  reaping  what 
they  have  sown.  The  exceptional  advantages 
created  by  protection  for  the  favoured  industries 
prove  too  effective  a  fillip,  and  urge  them  into 
over-production.  Every  one  makes  for  the  field 
in  which  most  money  is  to  be  earned,  and  only 
realizes  his  mistake  when  he  has  gone  too  far. 
Free  trade  would  preserve  us  from  such 
dangers;  no  one  would  venture  to  produce 
before  assuring  himself  of  purchasers.  The 
falling  off  of  the  price  would  suffice  to  warn  the 
producer  and  to  keep  him  back.  It  would  be  a 
check  on  the  most  ardent." 

The  reasoning  is  specious,  but  it  is  not  borne 
out  by  the  facts  of  experience.  We  would  not 
deny  that  the  protectionist  system  does  stimulate 
production  by  encouraging  industry,  and  that 
its  influence  in  this  direction  is  apt  to  be  exces- 
sive. But  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  our  manu- 
facturers will  realize  presently  that  the  fierce 
rivalry  against  each  other  they  are  now  waging, 
robs  them  of  the  benefits  of  protective  legisla- 
tion, and  that  a  wise  compact  would  be  more  to 
their  interest  than  all  this  relentless  strife. 

But  it  would  be  a  grave  mistake  to  suppose 
that  under  free  trade  the  state  of  things  would 
be  improved.  It  is  obvious  that  a  manufacturer 

53 


France.     Improvements  in  Machinery 

who  is  obliged  to  seek  his  purchasers  all  over 
the  world,  and  who  cannot  even  count  upon 
those  in  his  own  special  market,  must  live  in 
a  state  of  perpetual  uncertainty,  and  cannot 
possibly  know  the  real  extent  of  the  demand  as 
well  as  he  who  lives  under  a  protectionist 
regime,  and  who  knows  at  least  what  purchasers 
he  will  find  at  home  ;  the  former  has  to  produce 
more  or  less  "  on  spec"  and  in  the  dark,  whereas 
the  latter  sees  clearly  how  he  stands. 

Another  influence  which  works  more  strongly 
under  free  trade  than  under  protection  is  the 
necessity  of  producing  in  large  quantities,  so  as 
to  diminish  working  expenses  and  keep  down 
the  net  cost.  It  is  because  she  has  been  slipping 
down  the  fatal  incline  for  fifty  years  past  that 
England  has  increased  her  output  beyond  all 
measure,  and  now  finds  herself  in  possession  of 
manufactories  and  plant  quite  out  of  proportion 
to  her  steadily  decreasing  clientele  throughout  the 
world. 

This  is  so  true,  and  she  is  being  carried  along 
at  such  a  speed,  that  at  this  very  moment — on 
the  morrow  of  the  crisis  which  threatened  so 
gravely  her  cotton  industry  a  year  ago — she  is 
going  ahead  again  full  tilt  on  her  career  of  over- 
production with  a  blindness  that  is  amazing. 
The  English  newspapers  tell  us  that  new  mills 

59 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


are  being  erected  in  Lancashire  representing 
something  like  2000  looms  and  2,000,000  spindles ! 
And  that  at  a  time  when  it  is  being  noted  in 
every  corner  of  the  globe  that  the  production  of 
cotton  is  far  surpassing  the  demand. 


IV 

The  truth  is  that  over-production  is  at  present 
an  endemic  evil,  which  rages  alike  under  pro- 
tection and  under  free  trade;  apart  from  the 
influences  at  which  we  have  glanced,  it  has  quite 
another  and  very  powerful  generator,  namely, 
the  increasing  progress  in  the  perfecting  of 
machinery.  Whether  this  take  the  form  of  quite 
new  inventions  or  the  improvement  and  develop- 
ment of  old,  the  result  is  the  same :  the  diminu- 
tion of  hand-labour  and  the  reduction  of  the 
number  of  hands.  No  one  can  interfere  with 
this,  and  we  encounter  here  one  of  those 
primordial  economic  laws  against  which  it  is 
vain  to  rebel,  however  regrettable  their  results. 

It  furnishes  us  with  a  decisive  answer  to 
another  objection,  very  grave  at  first  sight, 
which  is  advanced  by  those  who  refuse  absolutely 
to  admit  that  there  is  such  a  phenomenon  as 
over-production.  "Your  fears  are  vain,"  they 
say ;  "  over-production  is  merely  an  accidental 

60 


France,    Improvements  in  Machinery 

thing  that  corrects  itself,  and  this  will  prove  the 
case  now  as  always.  After  a  certain  period  of 
slackness,  during  which  there  will  be  a  natural 
abatement  in  production,  the  market  will  return 
to  its  healthier  condition ;  the  demand  will 
become  stronger  again,  new  purchasers  will 
make  their  appearance,  and  equilibrium  will  be 
re-established.  All  is  well  that  ends  well." 

I  am  far  from  seeing  things  in  this  opti- 
mistic light,  but,  granting  that  it  be  so,  for 
the  sake  of  argument,  the  theory  leaves  out  of 
account  this  factor  of  which  I  have  spoken 
— the  unceasing  and  unlimited  perfecting  of 
machinery. 

This  process  of  perfecting  proceeds  at  an 
unheard-of  pace.  The  United  States  make  some 
new  invention  every  day  which  has  the  effect  of 
reducing  the  number  of  workmen  required — 
such  as  the  new  cotton  loom  which  requires  but 
one  workman  to  every  eight  or  even  twelve 
looms.  It  is  true  that  this  particular  loom  does 
not  yet  yield  good  results,  except  with  common 
coarse  stuffs,  but  who  shall  say  that  some  means 
will  not  be  discovered  of  adapting  it  to  finer 
material  ?  In  this  case  it  will  involve  the 
suppression  of  half  the  manual  labour  now 
required.  The  Americans  have  invented  all 
kinds  of  wonderful  machines  performing  tasks 

61 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


so  delicate  and  difficult  that  the  supplest  human 
hands  cannot  compete  with  them.* 

There  is  no  reason,  therefore,  why  in  time 
workmen  should  not  be  almost  entirely  replaced 
by  the  slave  of  iron  alluded  to  by  M.  Thery. 
The  results  of  this  gradual  elimination  of 
manual  labour  have  begun  to  make  themselves 

*  M.  Jules  Huret,  in  his  very  suggestive  and  interesting 
book  on  the  United  States,  "De  New  York  a  New  Orleans," 
gives  us  a  humorous  account  of  one  of  these  marvellous 
American  machines  which  he  saw  in  a  metal  foundry.  "  A  tall 
turret  with  gigantic  arms  set  in  motion  by  one  man,  glided 
about  over  the  immense  room,  taking  up  out  of  the  furnaces  as 
it  passed  great  plates  of  steel,  50  centimetres  thick,  raising 
them  aloft,  turning  them  round,  replacing  them  in  other  furnaces, 
or  putting  them  on  the  cylinders  of  the  rolling-mills  (?),  making 
a  thousand  gestures  so  swift  and  unexpected  that  I  simply 
could  not  follow  them,  and  pirouetting  round  with  all  the 
graces  of  a  ballet-dancer  !  Literally,  it  waltzed  !  We  rushed 
about  after  it  and  its  inmate,  but  of  a  sudden  it  would  threaten 
us  with  its  agile  and  mighty  arm,  and  we  slipped  to  one  side. 
This  is  a  true  description.  It  all  seemed  like  a  nightmare,  and 
I  kept  asking  myself  whether  I  was  not  dreaming.  I  think  it 
was  of  this  Hoffmannesque  engine  that  the  American  manager 
sai  to  me — 

" '  Not  good  enough,  this.  I've  asked  the  Board  for  half  a 
million  dollars  to  construct  a  new  one,  which  shall  be  twice  as 
practical.' 

"  *  And  what  will  you  do  with  this  one — sell  it  ? ' 

"  He  smiled. 

"'Not  likely.  We  shall  "scrap"  it.  We  are  often  asked 
to  sell  our  machines  to  Europe,  but  we  always  refuse.  It 
would  be  bad  policy  to  provide  our  rivals  with  our  own  special 
arms.' " 

62 


France*    Improvements  in  Machinery 

felt  already  in  our  great  industries,  and  it  is 
possible  to  figure  them  out  exactly. 

Let  us  take,  for  instance,  the  English  cotton 
industry.  In  1891,  it  counted  45,000,000  spindles ; 
now  it  counts  47,000,000,  an  increase  of  3*6  per 
cent.  Has  the  number  of  workmen  increased  in 
proportion?  Not  at  all — far  from  increasing,  it 
has  been  diminished  by  3*8  per  cent,  going  down 
from  605,000  in  1891,  to  582,000  in  1901.  In 
France,  we  should  certainly  be  able  to  record 
the  same  result,  if  our  official  statistics  were  as 
well  made  out  as  the  English. 

Our  Annuaire  de  Commerce  furnishes  us,  how- 
ever, with  sufficient  data  regarding  the  metal 
industries.  It  establishes  the  fact  that  in  1901, 
72,000  workmen  were  employed  in  the  produc- 
tion of  1,000,743  tons,  while  in  1902  only  68,000 
were  employed  in  the  production  of  1,000,885— a 
diminution  of  4,000. 

The  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  these  facts, 
which  are  but  a  feeble  indication  of  what  the 
future  has  in  store  for  us,  is  manifest,  and  has 
been  formulated  with  admirable  precision  by  the 
great  American  statistician,  Edward  Atkinson, 
whose  words  I  may  here  cite  textually  :  "  The 
time  is  not  far  distant,"  he  declares,  "when  even 
in  the  textile  industry  the  same  conditions  will 
prevail  that  we  find  in  the  metal  foundries 

63 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


to-day  :  you  will  scarcely  see  a  single  hand  in  the 
workshop.  Workmen  will  become  fewer  and 
fewer,  the  work  being  all  done  automatically, 
until  at  last  the  manufactories  shall  have  become 
nothing  but  mechanical  contrivances,  conducted 
by  a  few  experts  keeping  an  eye  on  the  machines, 
and  with  only  a  very  few  specially  chosen  skilful 
hands  employed  in  the  weaving  rooms." 

Thus,  even  in  the  collective  industries  indi- 
viduality, personal  capacity,  and  aptitude,  will 
come  to  prevail  more  and  more,  and  though  the 
manufactories  may  increase  in  number,  and  their 
output  become  ever  greater,  the  proportion  of 
ordinary  hands  will  steadily  decrease. 


MERCHANTS  AND   WORKMEN 


CHAPTER  IV 

MERCHANTS  AND  WORKMEN 

I 

p 

/""\UR  French  workmen,  who  have  an  instinc- 
^^  tive  dread  of  this  danger,  endeavour  to 
ward  it  off  by  refusing  to  adapt  themselves  to 
the  progress  of  machinery ;  we  find  them  going 
out  on  strike  when  their  employer  calls  on  them 
to  manage  four  spindles  at  a  time  as  in  England. 
Many  of  them  draw  the  line  at  two  spindles. 
The  unfortunate  fellows  imagine  they  are  doing 
a  good  thing  when  they  oblige  their  employer  to 
find  occupation  for  as  many  of  them  as  possible, 
not  perceiving  that  they  are  thus  preventing  him 
from  improving  their  lot  and  from  increasing 
their  wages.  Yet  the  figures  are  there  to  open 
their  eyes,  and  to  enable  them  to  see  how  things 
really  stand  :  the  American  cotton-weaver,  who 
attends  to  eight  spindles,  earns  sixty-two  francs 
a  week;  the  Englishman,  who  attends  to  four, 
earns  thirty;  while  the  Frenchman,  with  two, 

67  F  2 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


earns  only  twenty-four.  Yet  the  French  work- 
man, who  earns  less  than  the  American  or  the 
Englishman,  costs  his  employer  much  more  and 
augments  his  working  expenses  to  a  very  con- 
siderable extent;  his  labour  represents  12  francs 
to  each  spindle,  while  the  Englishman's  is  only 
7*50  and  the  American's  7*80. 

What  is  the  result  ?  Simply  that  the  French 
merchant  is  handicapped  in  the  competition,  and 
thus  loses  a  proportion  of  his  trade,  to  the  great 
detriment  of  the  workmen.  It  must  be  admitted 
that  the  truth  of  this  is  now  gradually  beginning 
to  come  home  to  the  workmen  themselves,  and 
that  in  consequence  some  of  them  are  seeing  the 
wisdom  of  agreeing  to  work  the  four  spindles. 

There  is,  of  course,  no  doubt  that  the  inevit- 
able result  of  the  advances  made  in  industrial 
machinery  will  be  a  reduction  in  the  number  of 
workmen  employed,  and  that  we  find  ourselves 
thus  face  to  face  with  an  economic  and  social 
problem  for  which  some  satisfactory  solution 
must  at  all  costs  be  found.  How  is  work  to  be 
found  for  all  the  hands  that  will  be  thrown  idle 
upon  the  market  ?  It  will  be  for  economists  and 
statesmen  to  inquire  into  this  serious  state  of 
affairs,  and  to  devise  some  means  for  facilitating 
the  transition  to  a  new  order  of  things. 


Merchants  and  Workmen 


II 

The  Socialists  believe  that  they  have  found 
the  true  solution ;  after  a  long  and  vain  resistance 
against  machinery  as  the  enemy  of  the  worker, 
they  have  ended  by  bowing  down  before  it  as 
something  inevitable,  and  to-day  we  find  them 
declaring  that  it  is  to  be  blessed  for  doing 
away  with  so  much  ungrateful  and  unnecessary 
human  labour.  There  is  no  cause,  it  seems,  to 
be  afraid  of  its  results.  To  make  sure  of  every 
workman  finding  employment,  all  that  is  needed 
is  to  reduce  the  Jength  of  the  working  day, 
shortening  it,  according  to  the  time-saving  pro- 
perties of  the  machine,  from  ten  hours  to  eight 
or  six  or  even  five.  After  a  long  period  of  - 
sorrow  and  suffering  mankind  will  arrive  in  this 
way  eventually  at  the  millennium. 

In  the  abstract,  this  reasoning  is  all  right, 
and  it  sounds  so  well  that  one  would  like  to 
believe  it  irrefutable.  In  practice,  however,  it 
conflicts  with  the  facts.  The  mistake  the 
Socialists  fall  into  lies  in  their  belief  that  the 
reduction  of  the  hours  of  labour  is  a  matter  that 
each  country  is  able  to  settle  for  itself;  whereas 
it  would  only  be  practicable  if  the  country 
making  the  experiment  had  no  commercial  and 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


industrial  relations  with  the  rest  of  the  world, 
had  no  exports,  and  could  live  upon  its  own 
produce.  This  state  of  things  exists  only  in 
dreamland. 

The  commercial  interests  of  the  nations,  far 
from  being  isolated,  are  getting  to  be  more  and 
more  intermingled  and  interdependent;  their 
solidarity  is  becoming  every  day  more  manifest. 
There  is  not  a  single  nation  at  present  which 
is  not  obliged,  in  order  to  keep  going  and  to 
provide  work  for  its  labourers,  to  export  a  part 
of  its  produce,  and  in  order  that  it  may  hold 
its  own  in  the  general  competition,  its  net  costs 
must  be  kept  down.  Now,  as  labour  represents 
in  most  industries  the  most  important  item,  it 
is  essential  that  there  should  not  be  too  great 
a  discrepancy  as  regards  its  cost  in  different 
countries.  The  question  has  become  an  inter- 
national one  of  the  highest  importance,  and  can 
only  be  settled  by  the  various  nations  in  council. 
Only  thus  can  all  the  interests  involved  be 
reconciled,  and  our  French  Socialists,  who  at 
their  public  meetings  cry  out  so  vehemently 
for  an  eight-hours'  day,  should  address  their 
appeals  to  workmen  abroad,  until  they  have 
converted  the  foreigner  to  their  views;  they 
could  only  achieve  their  ends  in  France  at  the 
expense  of  our  own  unfortunate  workmen. 

70 


Merchants  and  Workmen 


The  reduction  of  the  hours  of  labour,  more- 
over, cannot  go  beyond  a  certain  point,  and  will 
not  suffice  in  itself  to  make  up  for  the  diminu- 
tion in  the  need  for  manual  labour  caused  by 
the  progress  of  machinery.  This  is,  moreover, 
another  objection  to  any  undue  regulation  of  the 
hours  of  labour.  It  is  apt  to  be  forgotten  that, 
side  by  side  with  the  three  million  operatives  in 
our  great  manufactories,  there  are  six  millions 
working  in  small  establishments,  or  in  their 
own  homes,  on  whom  an  eight-hours'  day,  still 
less  a  five-hours'  day,  could  not  be  imposed, 
for  the  conditions  of  their  labour  have  not 
been  affected  by  the  advent  of  machinery;  in 
agriculture,  there  are  another  three  millions 
who  will  always  be  obliged  to  rise  before  dawn 
and  work  until  after  sunset. 

Among  these  three  millions  there  will 
assuredly  be  many  who  will  find  it  hard  to 
reconcile  themselves  to  a  continuance  of  their 
unremitting  labour,  if  they  hear  that  the 
operatives  in  the  city  are  only  asked  to  work 
a  few  hours  a  day.  These  will  quit  the  plough, 
and  offer  their  services,  cheap,  at  the  doors  of 
the  manufactories.  Instead,  therefore,  of  the 
out-of-work  problem  being  solved,  the  number 
of  our  out-of-works  will  be  greater  than  ever.* 

*  The  American  workers  instead  of  fighting  against  the 
71 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


III 

Now  the  actual  condition  of  things  in  respect 
to  unemployment  is  serious  enough,  without 
our  allowing  it  to  get  worse.  When  we  turn 
our  eyes  in  this  direction,  we  are  startled  and 
shocked  by  what  we  see,  for  there  is  no  more 
infallible  evidence  as  to  the  real  condition  of 
the  market  than  the  statistics  as  to  the  number 
of  hands  out  of  work.  When  trade  is  pros- 
perous, the  number  is  reduced  to  a  minimum. 
When  trade  is  bad  it  increases. 

It  would  seem  as  though  the  majority  of  the 
great  markets  have  been  slack  for  some  years 
past.  In  the  Board  of  Trade  Report  for  1903, 
we  get  precise  information  as  to  the  state  of 
things  in  England.  "The  labour  market,"  it 
tells  us,  "  shows  a  falling-off  compared  with  the 
preceding  three  years.  The  average  percentage 
of  trades-unionists  out  of  work  has  been  5-1  in 
1903.  It  was  4'4  in  1902,  3*8  in  1901,  2*4  in  1899. 
The  number  of  people  in  London  in  receipt  of 

machines,  do  all  they  can  to  bring  them  to  perfection,  knowing 
that  the  more  perfect  the  machine,  the  more  important  is  the 
man  who  attends  to  it,  and  the  bigger  his  wage.  Their  industrial 
ideal  is  that  of  a  small  body  of  skilled  artisans,  highly  paid  and 
continually  bettering  their  position  by  raising  themselves 
steadily  on  the  ladder  of  professional  knowledge. 


Merchants  and  Workmen 


poor-law  relief  increased  from  103,000  in  1900 
to  1 14,000  in  1903. 

In  Germany  the  situation  is  not  much  more 
brilliant,  despite  the  apparent  prosperity  of  her 
trade.  M.  Vaillant,  in  his  recent  speech  in  the 
Chamber  of  Deputies,  cites  an  elaborate  census 
taken  by  the  Berlin  Workmen's  Syndicate, 
according  to  which  the  total  number  of  men 
entirely  out  of  work  in  the  Prussian  capital 
was  76,000.  Including  those  partially  out  oi 
work  the  number  was  117,000. 

Let  us  come  now  to  France,  and  consult  the 
tables  of  statistics  supplied  by  the  Labour 
Bureau,  and  complemented  by  M.  Faguet's 
report  to  the  Labour  Council. 

These  documents  tell  us  that  the  average 
number  of  out-of-works  was  7  per  cent,  in  1896, 
775  per  cent,  in  1901,  and  9  per  cent,  in  1902. 
But  it  must  be  noted  that  this  is  not  the  whole 
truth.  These  numbers  are  supplied  by  the 
better-organized  syndicates  which  suffer  least 
from  the  evil  of  unemployment. 

More  importance  is  to  be  attached  to  another 
document,  infinitely  more  precise,  and  at  the 
same  time  more  wide-embracing.  In  the  census 
returns  of  1896  and  1901,  workers  out  of  em- 
ployment were  called  upon  to  mention  their 
trade.  From  these  returns  it  appears  that  in 

73 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


1896  the  number  of  unemployed  was  4*6  per 
cent,  and  that  in  1901  it  had  risen  to  6-5  per 
cent. — a  very  serious  increase. 

But  these  figures  do  not  give  any  adequate 
idea  of  the  importance  of  the  army  of  unem- 
ployed, for  alongside  the  worker  who  is  con- 
stantly in  this  condition,  and  who  comes  officially 
under  the  category,  must  be  ranged  all  those 
innumerable  nondescripts,  tramps  and  loafers, 
who  live  by  odd  jobs  when  they  do  any  work 
at  all.  These  men  adrift,  objects  of  so  much 
danger  to  society,  are  reckoned  at  400,000  in 
France.  They  are  a  scourge  to  our  country 
districts,  and  complaints  about  them  come 
unceasingly  to  the  Government  as  well  to  the 
local  authorities. 

The  numbers  of  our  unemployed  would  be 
much  greater  were  it  not  for  the  immense  de- 
velopment of  the  new  motor  industry,  still  so 
conspicuously  French.  The  progress  in  this  has 
been  one  of  the  most  curious  economic  pheno- 
mena of  recent  years.  The  total  production  for 
1903,  in  France,  is  estimated  at  171  million  francs, 
of  which  about  50  millions  were  exported.  If  to 
this  we  add  the  output  of  bicycles  and  motor- 
cycles, which  represent  about  240  millions,  we 
get  a  grand  total  of  400  millions.  The  number 
of  workmen  engaged  directly  or  indirectly  in 

74 


Merchants  and  Workmen 


that  great  industry  is  reckoned  at  150,000,  and 
their  wages  at  300,000,000  francs.  Imagine  what 
would  be  the  state  of  things  if  this  great  army  of 
workers  was  unemployed ! 

It  is  only  right  to  bracket  with  the  motor 
industry  all  those  electricity  works  whose 
advance  is  also  one  of  the  most  considerable 
factors  in  our  economic  situation.  But  flourish- 
ing though  these  industries  be  now,  it  would  be 
a  great  mistake  to  believe  that  they  are  going  to 
maintain  for  long  their  upward  tendency.  The 
clientele  for  automobiles  has  been  supplied  for 
some  years  to  come,  and  it  is  evident  that  the 
"  boom  "  still  in  progress  will  shortly  come  to 
an  end. 


IV 

If  we  pass  now  from  industry  to  commerce, 
we  have  to  note  a  still  more  swollen  condition  of 
things.  The  exodus  from  the  country  which 
was  caused  by  the  agricultural  crisis,  and  which 
we  shall  analyse  in  detail  presently,  has  affected 
commerce  even  more  than  it  has  industry. 
Multitudes  of  small  farmers,  and  even  of  small 
land-owners,  have  flooded  into  the  cities,  and 
having  capitalized  their  small  possessions  have 
invested  the  result  in  a  small  confectionery 

75 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


business,  or  haberdashery  establishment,  or  fruit- 
shop,  or  more  frequently  still  in  a  wine-shop. 
The  great  increase  in  the  numbers  of  cabarets — 
a  thing  to  be  so  much  regretted — is  due  in  large 
degree  to  this.* 

To  form  a  clear  idea  of  the  really  alarming 
increase  in  the  numbers  of  these  small  trades- 
men, the  figures  should  be  compared  with  those 
that  show  the  corresponding  diminution  of  the 
agricultural  population  during  the  same  period. 
The  Political  Economy  Annual  for  1899  helps  us 
to  do  this.  It  tells  us  that  while  in  1872  the 
agricultural  classes  represented  5270  in  every 
section  of  10,000  of  the  entire  population,  in  1884 
the  proportion  was  only  5003,  and  in  1891  only 
4733.  While  as  regards  commerce,  the  move- 
ment was  all  the  other  way :  the  proportion  in 

*  This  side  of  the  question  of  the  rural  exodus  has  been  clearly 
dealt  with  by  M.  Tisserand,  Director  of  Agriculture,  in  his 
masterly  introduction  to  the  decennial  statistical  record  of 
1882.  In  this  he  raises  a  cry  of  warning  against  the  growth  in 
the  numbers  of  middlemen  as  one  of  the  dangers  of  the  future. 
"  They  have  multiplied,"  he  tells  us,  "from  1,537,000  in  1861,  to 
4,644,000  in  1 88 1  ;  this,  in  spite  of  the  loss  of  Alsace-Lorraine ; 
an  increase  of  more  than  six  to  the  square  kilometre  !  In  other 
words,  our  agriculturists  and  industrials  have  to  keep  and  even 
to  enrich  3,106,000  more  middlemen  now  than  then  !  This  is  a 
real  evil,  explaining  at  once  the  diminution  in  the  profits  of 
agriculture  and  industry,  and  the  increase  in  prices  to  the 
consumer." 

76 


Merchants  and  Workmen 


1872  having  been  843  per  10,000;  in  1881,  1063; 
and  in  1891,  1076.* 

We  are  not  yet  in  possession  of  the  complete 
results  of  the  census  of  1901.  However,  we  are 
enabled  to  form  an  idea  of  them  from  the  lumin- 
ous preliminary  report  of  M.  Levasseur,  Director 
of  the  College  de  France,  which  has  appeared 
recently.  He  informs  us  that  from  1896  to  1901, 
the  numbers  of  the  urban  population  have  been 
increased  by  895,000,  this  figure  resulting  not 
from  the  excess  of  births  over  deaths — which 
comes  to  only  35,000— but  being  accounted  for 
principally  by  the  enormous  exodus  from  the 
rural  districts,  which  is  recorded  as  exceeding 
the  figures  of  the  preceding  census  by  670,000. 

Possibly  this  figure  may  need  to  be  corrected, 
for  if  we  turn  to  another  section  of  the  report,  it 
would  appear  that  the  rural  exodus  towards 
certain  large  towns  has  ceased  entirely  in  some 
very  important  regions,  such  as  those  of  the 
north  and  east.  This  is  a  very  notable  improve- 
ment, and  a  reassuring  sign  for  the  future.  The 
evil  is  already  checked,  and  we  are  beginning  to 
ascend  again  the  incline  down  which  we  have 
been  gliding. 

Unfortunately,  the  commercial  plethora  still 

*  It  should  be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  both  tendencies 
became  noticeable  long  before  1872. 

77 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


rages  to  its  full  extent,  and  its  results  are  de- 
plorable for  every  one,  for  consumers  as  well 
as  for  agriculturists. 

This  multiplicity  of  petty  traders  in  all  our 
towns,  big  and  little,  obliged  to  make  their  liveli- 
hood by  the  sale  of  the  products  passing  through 
their  hands,  has  had  the  effect  of  raising  in  an 
extraordinary  degree  all  the  absolute  necessaries 
of  life.  We  thus  arrive  at  this  absurd  state  of 
things,  that  the  more  the  producer  strives  to 
lower  his  cost  of  production  and  his  sale  price, 
the  more  the  consumer  has  to  pay.  It  is  the 
intermediary — the  petty  tradesman — who  gets 
the  greater  part  of  the  profit. 

What  is  most  annoying  about  it  is  that  the 
tradesman  himself,  far  from  making  his  fortune, 
merely  stands  still  feebly,  when  he  does  not 
come  to  smash.  This  fact  may  sound  incredible, 
yet  it  is  easily  explained;  the  large  profits 
realized  formerly  by  the  middlemen,  when  they 
were  limited  in  numbers,  having  led  to  the  exodus 
from  the  rural  districts,  the  result  has  been 
that  a  fierce  and  ruinous  competition  has  come 
about,  between  the  great  numbers  that  are 
now  dabbling  in  trade  to-day. 

We  could  instance  districts  in  Paris  in  which 
twenty  years  ago  there  were  only  two  fruiterers, 
and  in  which  now  there  are  six  or  eight — the 

78 


Merchants  and  Workmen 


same  could  be  said  of  grocers,  bakers,  butchers, 
haberdashers,  florists ;  while  as  to  wine-sellers, 
their  name  is  legion.  All  these  small  shops, 
groaning  under  heavy  expenses  and  forced  to 
make  their  profits  out  of  a  meagre  clientele,  are 
only  just  managing  to  exist  in  spite  of  the  high 
prices  they  ask. 

And,  of  course,  they  are  in  continual  warfare 
with  the  big  stores  which  are  coming  into 
existence  everywhere,  winning  customers  to 
them  by  their  low  prices.  The  tendency  is 
irresistible,  however  much  we  may  regret  it. 

The  only  way  of  fighting  against  it  would  be 
for  the  small  tradesmen  to  have  recourse  to  co- 
operation themselves,  so  as  to  get  their  goods  at 
the  same  low  prices  as  the  stores.  Unfortunately 
they  are  too  much  divided  among  themselves  for 
that,  and  co-operation  is  so  little  in  our  blood 
that  we  prefer  to  perish  rather  than  come  to 
terms  with  our  competitors. 

Meanwhile,  certain  it  is  that  our  petty 
tradesmen  suffer  cruelly,  and  that  some  of  them 
fall  out  of  the  ranks  every  day.  The  statistics 
as  to  failures  tell  us  that. 


79 


THE    RETURN    TO    THE    LAND 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  RETURN  TO  THE  LAND 

I 

WHAT,  then,  is  to  become  of  our  countless 
workers  unable  to  find  work  ? 

There  is  but  one  opening,  one  resource  for 
them — an  opening  wide  enough  for  all,  a  resource 
that  will  be  inexhaustible  for  centuries  yet  to 
come :  the  land. 

For  a  moment  the  land  has  been  thrown  into 
the  shade  by  the  manufacturing  industries  which 
have  fascinated  all  eyes,  absorbed  all  minds, 
given  rise  to  all  kinds  of  hopes.  The  humble 
industry  of  agriculture  fell  into  disdain. 

It  only  began  once  more  to  raise  its  head 
when  science  at  last  turned  her  eyes  upon  it, 
and  became  aware  that  it  was  indeed  the  first  of 
all  industries,  not  only  because  it  was  the  most 
necessary,  but  because  it  was  the  most  elevated 
scientifically,  being  in  its  essence  the  centre  of 
all  those  sciences  that  find  in  the  soil  their 
principal  field  of  action. 

83  G  2 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


But  if  agriculture  has  been  reinstated  in  its 
place  from  the  standpoint  of  science,  this  has  yet 
to  be  done  for  it  in  the  domain  of  economics  ;  it 
is  suffering  still  from  its  former  attitude  of 
humility,  and  there  is  much  to  be  done  before  it 
can  attain  the  popularity  of  its  younger  sister, 
industry.  We  shall  be  well  employed,  there- 
fore, in  doing  all  that  we  can  to  enlist  public 
interest  in  its  present  condition  and  future  possi- 
bilities. The  necessity  for  finding  new  openings 
for  labour  increases  every  day.  The  more 
difficult  the  labour  question  becomes  in  the 
world  of  manufacture,  the  more  the  movement 
back  to  the  land  will  gather  force.  It  has  begun 
already,  and  things  will  advance  more  speedily 
than  is  supposed. 


II 

We  are  met,  of  course,  with  the  eternal 
objection  which,  since  the  beginning  of  the 
agricultural  crisis,  has  always  been  thrown  at 
those  who  have  sought  to  stem  the  current  and 
prevent  the  exodus  from  the  fields.  "You  are 
attempting  the  impossible,"  they  cry;  "the 
movement  you  are  trying  to  foster,  however 
desirable  in  itself,  must  meet  with  insuperable 

84 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


difficulties.  The  return  to  the  land  is  a  mere 
idyll,  quite  out  of  place  in  a  matter-of-fact  world 
like  ours.  How  are  you  to  divert  a  current 
which  has  been  running  with  such  strength  for 
more  than  half  a  century,  and  which  has  carried 
along  everything  in  its  course  ?  Our  agricultural 
population  has  been  decreasing  steadily  in 
accordance  with  the  Fates. 

"  If  the  country  has  been  abandoned,  this  has 
not  been  without  reasons,  and  the  reasons  still 
exist.  The  agricultural  labourer  has  deserted 
the  soil  because  it  imposed  on  him  too  much  / 
work  and  too  many  privations ;  he  has  preferred 
the  factory  because  it  gave  him  higher  wages 
with  less  tiring  work  and  more  regular  hours. 
Why  should  he  return  to  the  land  which  cannot 
offer  him  an  equivalent  for  what  he  now  has  ? 

"  The  farmer  and  the  landowner  see  things 
in  the  same  light.  If  they  also  find  their  way  to 
the  towns,  it  is  because  they  have  found  life  in 
the  country  too  wearing  and  too  unprofitable." 

We  should  not  dream  of  denying  this 
melancholy  but  manifest  truth.  It  is  incon- 
testable that  the  complaints  of  the  agricultural 
world  are  only  too  well  founded.  It  is  easy  to 
understand  why  the  rural  classes  have  been 
induced  to  move  en  masse  into  the  towns. 

The  crisis,  which   raged   more  disastrously 

85 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


with  us  than  anywhere  else,  because  it  was  pre- 
ceded by  an  era  of  unexampled  prosperity,  was 
bound  to  put  our  agriculturists  into  a  state  of 
panic  and  to  upset  all  existing  conditions. 
What  industry  is  there  which,  seeing  its 
revenues  decreased  by  one-half,  while  its  ex- 
penses remained  stationary,  could  long  resist 
such  a  depression?  None  could  have  borne  so 
hard  an  ordeal,  and  but  for  the  tenacity  and 
courage  of  our  agriculturists  and  their  inde- 
structible love  for  the  land,  there  would  have 
been  an  end  altogether  to  agricultural  industry 
in  France. 

The  rural  exodus  brought  it  within  an  inch  of 
destruction;  fortunately  those  who  remained  in 
the  breach  gave  proof  of  an  indomitable  energy 
which  saved  the  situation. 

And  now,  ts  it  possible  to  stem  the  current  ? 
Is  there  any  new  element  in  the  situation  at 
present  that  will  allow  us  to  hope  for  a  reaction  ? 
Undoubtedly  there  is.  The  present  condition 
of  things  economically  is  just  the  opposite  to 
what  it  was  thirty  years  ago.  The  manufacturing 
industry  was  then  in  the  ascendant,  agriculture 
was  going  down.  Now  agriculture  is  rising 
visibly,  while  the  manufacturing  industry  has 
come  to  a  standstill. 

The  force  of  circumstances  will,  moreover, 
86 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


bring  back  to  agriculture  those  who  can  no 
longer  earn  a  livelihood  in  the  factories. 
Labourers  who  have  been  long  out  of  work  and 
who  have  families  to  support  will  give  up  the 
unequal  struggle  in  the  towns.  For  the  few 
who  will  drag  on  to  the  end,  how  many  will  giva 
in  and  reconcile  themselves  to  the  inevitable  ? 


Ill 

But  since  then  a  great  event  has  come  about 
in  the  history  of  economics,  doing  away  with 
the  chief  cause  of  the  crisis  and  completely 
changing  the  face  of  the  agricultural  world. 
The  Government  has  at  last  hearkened  to  the 
legitimate  complaints  of  agriculture,  crushed 
under  the  weight  of  foreign  competition,  and  has 
put  it  on  an  equality  with  commerce  by  means 
of  a  protective  tariff.  The  tariff  of  1892  was  an 
act  of  reparation  and  justice  for  it. 

The  state  of  our  agriculture  in  all  its  branches 
has  been  improved  so  much  by  this  tariff,  and 
our  production  of  cereals  as  well  as  of  cattle  has 
been  so  much  stimulated,  that  France  has  been 
able,  not  merely  to  supply  her  own  needs,  but  to 
export  a  surplus  as  well.* 

*  Since  1884,  the  year  preceding  the  first  establishment  of 
protective  duties,  our  agricultural  trade  has  never  ceased  to 

87 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


So  far  so  good,  but  it  would  not  do  to  insist 
too  much  upon  the  point,  and  it  is  not  to  be 
maintained  that  a  protectionist  tariff  is  all  that  is 
required,  and  that  agriculture  has  no  other 
enemy  besides  foreign  competition.  On  the 
contrary,  agriculture  has  to  cope  with  the  same 
difficulties  as  other  industries,  and  its  life  is  a 
constant  struggle.  It  is  a  great  thing,  however, 
to  have  removed  from  its  path  an  obstacle 
against  which  all  its  efforts  came  to  grief,  and  to 
have  thus  made  it  mistress  of  its  own  destinies. 

Let  us  now  inquire  into  the  numerous  dis- 
advantages it  has  to  fight  against,  premising  that 

improve  steadily.  This  has  been  very  clearly  set  forth  in  a 
work  published  by  M.  Henry  Sagnier,  of  the  Journal  de 
?  Agriculture.  In  his  table  of  statistics,  M.  Sagnier  leaves  aside 
such  entirely  foreign  products  as  rice,  coffee,  tea,  cocoa,  and 
pepper,  as  well  as  our  trade  with  Algiers  and  our  sugar  trade, 
which  last  he  considers  to  have  been  too  directly  influenced  by  the 
special  legislation  of  the  last  few  years.  These  items  eliminated, 
he  shows  that  our  imports  of  agricultural  products  amounted 
in  1884  to  1,094,000,000  francs,  and  our  exports  to  652,000,000. 
Thus  there  was  an  excess  of  imports  of  441,000,000— that  is  to 
say,  France  had  to  pay  out  this  sum  to  the  foreigner  for  her 
food.  From  the  beginning  of  1900,  the  exports  began  to  exceed 
the  imports.  The  excess  of  imports  that  year  was  100,000,000, 
in  1901  it  was  152,000.000,  in  1902  it  reached  202,000,000.  In 
1903  it  sank  to  62,000,000,  but  in  1904  it  rose  again  to 
124,000,000. 

In  the  twenty  years,  therefore,  from  1884  to  1904,  there  has 
been  an  advance  of  565,000,000  in  this  figure  representing  the 
progress  made  by  our  agriculture. 

88 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


the  general  situation  has  undoubtedly  improved 
a  good  deal  of  recent  years,  and  is  improving 
more  and  more  every  day. 

It  is  to  be  noted,  first  of  all,  that  if  the 
agricultural  crisis  proved  disastrous  to  the  old- 
established  proprietors,  who  saw  their  land 
depreciated  to  half  its  previous  value,  it  affected 
very  much  less  the  new  proprietors,  who  pur- 
chased their  land  at  low  prices.  When  land  is 
cheap,  its  cultivator  may  hope  for  larger  profits 
for  his  labour.  Land  is  consequently  becoming 
more  in  request,  and  recent  statistics  show  in 
some  departements  a  certain  increase  in  rents  and 
in  the  price  of  estates — a  sure  sign  of  revival. 

Despite  this  slight  improvement,  however, 
there  is  no  doubt  that  the  position  of  an  owner 
who  is  forced  to  let  his  land  is  still  far  from 
enviable,  and  that  investments  in  real  estate  are 
by  no  means  profitable.  Very  different  is  the 
position  of  the  actual  cultivator  of  the  soil, 
whether  he  be  landowner  or  farmer.  It  may  be 
taken  as  beyond  doubt  that  the  agriculturist  who 
has  received  a  serious  professional  training,  and 
who  is  at  once  progressive  and  methodical,  is 
certain  to  draw  in  a  good  revenue  upon  his 
capital,  whilst  living  in  better  style  than  many 
well-to-do  citizens. 

There  is  still  one  great  difficulty  in  the  way 
89 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


of  good  and  profitable  cultivation  of  the  soil,  it  is 
true,  and  that  is  the  lack  of  cheap  manual  labour ; 
the  small  farmer  has  to  do  without  it,  relying  on 
his  own  exertions  and  those  of  his  family. 
There  is  a  good  deal  of  truth  in  the  saying,  that 
the  fortune  of  a  small  farmer  is  in  proportion  to 
the  number  of  his  children.  The  more  children 
he  has  the  better.  This  need  is  of  good  augury 
for  :the  future  of  France,  hitherto  so  gravely 
menaced  by  her  low  birth-rate. 

The  agricultural  crisis,  of  course,  has  been  by 
no  means  the  only  cause  of  the  exodus  from  the 
country.  There  is  another  which  has  been  more 
decisive  in  its  effects,  namely,  the  change  that  has 
come  over  the  minds  of  our  rural  population, 
especially  of  the  young.  They  have  quitted  the 
land  not  because  of  its  failure  to  provide  them 
with  the  means  of  subsistence,  but  because  of 
the  dreariness  of  existence  in  the  country  and 
the  apparent  fascinations  and  charms  of  the 
towns. 

They  have  been  drawn  to  the  towns  like 
moths  to  the  flame ;  in  their  small  cottages  they 
have  sat  dreaming  of  the  splendid  theatres,  the 
brightly-lit  cafes,  the  brilliant  fetes,  all  the 
comforts  and  luxuries  of  city  life,  and  then, 
when  they  have  come  back  to  reality  and  looked 
round  their  humble  dwellings,  at  the  grey  naked 

90 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


walls,  at  the  smoking  candle  and  their  soiled 
working  clothes,  they  have  been  seized  with  a 
great  longing  and  have  had  room  in  their  minds 
for  but  one  idea — to  get  away  at  all  cost,  blind- 
fold, not  knowing  whither. 

Call  it  what  you  will,  this  moral  phenomenon 
is  not  to  be  ignored.  This  state  of  mind  it  is 
that  is  luring  away  our  country-folk,  and  that 
accounts  for  the  growth  of  our  monstrous  cities, 
stretching  out  their  arms  in  all  directions  and 
absorbing  the  life  of  the  regions  all  around. 

The  fascination  has  doubled  in  its  intensity 
since  enforced  military  service  has  made  all  the 
youth  of  the  country  pass  through  the  garrisons 
of  the  towns.  It  is  there  they  acquire  their 
new  tastes,  habits  which  they  can  never  again 
renounce,  and  in  which  they  can  indulge  in  the 
towns — so  in  the  towns  they  remain.  If  by 
chance  they  do  return  to  the  plough,  it  is  not  for 
long ;  they  soon  weary  of  the  monotonous  life  of 
the  fields,  they  find  everything  beneath  them, 
men  and  things,  and  they  seize  the  first  oppor- 
tunity of  getting  away  again.  Their  great 
ambition  is  to  become  functionaries,  postmen, 
shop-walkers,  or  railway  employes. 

And  it  is  not  only  the  men  who  are  thus 
affected;  the  women  have  not  escaped  the 
contagion  of  their  example.  They  also  have 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


been  fascinated  by  the  sight  of  the  towns  to 
which  they  have  formed  the  habit  of  going  in 
search  of  pleasure  and  distractions.  They  have 
derived  from  them  a  taste  for  gaiety  and  fine 
dresses  and  holiday-making.  On  their  return, 
their  village  seems  to  them  dull,  the  farm  dirty 
and  dismal,  and  their  work  repugnant ;  the 
labourers  seem  to  them  dull  and  loutish  com- 
pared with  the  seductive  youths  who  have 
lavished  money  on  them  in  the  towns.  The 
role  of  farmer's  wife  seems  to  them  despicable, 
and  they  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  any  of 
the  young  men  of  the  village  except  those  who 
have  become  clerks  or  functionaries 

This  picture  suggests  something  of  the  change 
that  has  come  over  the  life  of  most  of  our  villages 
during  the  last  twenty  years.  We  could  instance 
several  cases  of  great  agricultural  families  which 
have  given  up  splendid  properties  with  aching 
hearts,  because  their  sons  could  not  find  women 
to  marry  them  and  share  their  life  in  the  country. 


IV 

Let  us  consider  now,  what  methods  are  to 
be  adopted  to  further  the  movement  back  to 
the  land,  and  to  attract  those  who  still  hesitate, 
but  who  would  be  only  too  happy  to  turn  their 

92 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


steps  in  this  direction  if  they  could  be  shown 
that  it  would  mean  happiness  and  prosperity 
and  well-being. 

First  of  all,  let  us  see  what  it  is  that  brings 
success  to  the  manufacturing  industry,  under 
what  conditions  a  factory  may  be  counted  upon 
earning  good  profits. 

Statesmen,  economists,  business  men  alike 
are  all  agreed  that  for  an  industry  to  attain  its 
maximum  of  prosperity  it  must  produce  inex- 
pensively and  in  large  quantities.  Its  working 
and  incidental  expenses  must  be  kept  as  low 
as  possible.  An  important  item  of  the  working 
expenses  is  the  raw  material.  When  this  is 
purchased  upon  advantageous  terms  and  when 
the  works  are  well  equipped  in  every  way, 
the  business  may  be  expected  to  achieve  good 
results. 

It  is  just  .the  same  with  agriculture.  In 
this  case  the  seeds  are  the  raw  material;  the 
fertilizers  represent  the  potent  machinery.  In 
both  respects  agriculture  during  the  last  ten 
years  has  been  at  least  on  a  level  with,  if  it 
has  not  had  the  advantages  of,  manufacture. 

Through  the  systematic  and  energetic  efforts 
of  the  agricultural  syndicate,  both  seeds  and 
fertilizers  of  the  best  quality  are  now  to  be 
obtained  at  half  the  former  prices.  The  change 

93 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


thus  brought  about  is  perhaps  the  most  remark- 
able of  any  during  the  last  half  century  in  the 
world  of  agriculture;  it  has  increased  tenfold 
the  possibilities  of  agricultural  development. 

Farming  on  a  small  scale,  always  a  prey  to 
hesitation  and  timorousness,  has  not  yet  entered 
fully  into  the  current,  and  there  is  still  much 
progress  to  be  made  here.  It  has  begun  to 
move,  however.  The  "model  farms"  which 
have  been  becoming  so  numerous  have  served 
to  open  men's  eyes,  and  to  show  them  what  can 
be  done. 

The  small  farmer  is  no  longer  able  to  plead 
his  poverty  as  an  excuse  for  not  making  use  of  the 
new  methods,  because  he  has  only  to  put  out 
his  hand  to  get  possession  of  the  small  amount 
of  money  required  for  the  necessary  purchases. 
It  will  be  advanced  to  him  by  the  admirable 
network  of  1500  mutual  loan  banks,  local  or 
provincial,  which  are  now  to  be  found  in  every 
part  of  France.  From  these  he  can  get  capital 
not  merely  for  fertilizers  but  also  for  invest- 
ments in  live  stock,  which  is  a  greater  considera- 
tion still.  These  advances  are  made  at  3  or  4 
per  cent,  interest  at  most. 

Our  organization  in  respect  to  agricultural 
loans  is  one  of  the  most  perfect  and  most 
complete  in  the  world.  Since  the  authorities 

94 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


placed  at  the  disposal  of  these  regional  banks, 
without  charging  them  interest,  40,000,000  francs 
from  the  Banque  de  France,  agriculture  has 
been  unable  to  complain  that  it  has  been  kept 
back  by  want  of  capital.  It  has  had  no  reason 
to  be  jealous  of  manufacture,  and  has  been  able 
to  raise  money  at  even  lower  rates. 

It  is  a  matter  for  regret  that  it  has  not  availed 
itself  to  the  full  of  its  opportunities,  for  some 
proportion  of  the  capital  available  for  its  use 
is  still  idle.  That  seems  a  surprising  phe- 
nomenon, but  it  will  surprise  no  one  familiar 
with  the  distrustful  and  over-prudent  mind  of 
the  French  peasant. 

He  dislikes  borrowing,  and  will  borrow  only 
when  he  feels  quite  certain  he  can  repay.  He 
is  not  like  those  chevaliers  d'industrie  who 
abound  in  cities  and  who  seek  loans  from  every 
one,  regardless  of  risks  of  failure.  Our  agri- 
culturists are  of  a  very  different  stamp,  and  in 
consequence  our  agricultural  banking  system 
is  the  most  firmly  established  in  the  world. 

This  is  the  reason  why  there  was  not  an 
immediate  rush  upon  the  well-filled  coffers  of 
the  regional  banks.  Our  agriculturists  have 
still  to  grasp  fully  the  importance  of  the  institu- 
tion of  credit  as  an  instrument  of  economic 
progress,  required  by  rich  as  well  as  poor. 

95 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


Their  education  in  this  direction  is  making  pro- 
gress, and  small  farmers  who  at  first  fought 
shy  of  the  banks,  now  may  be  seen  making  their 
way  to  them  quite  openly  and  no  longer  shame- 
faced over  the  transaction. 


But  if  agriculture  is  better  placed  than 
manufacture  in  this  respect,  it  is  less  fortunate 
in  regard  to  general  expenses.  Here  a  most 
important  item  is  taxation.  It  makes  all  the 
difference  as  between  the  cost  of  an  article  in 
one  country  and  in  another. 

This  is  a  matter  of  the  utmost  importance 
to  agriculture,  and  cannot  be  insisted  upon  too 
much ;  it  is  the  key  really  to  the  agricultural 
problem  of  to-day.  The  return  to  the  land  will 
not  be  fully  accomplished  until  the  powers 
that  be  shall  have  decided  to  enter  courage- 
ously upon  the  path  ot  reform  in  the  matter 
of  agricultural  taxation.  Our  code  of  procedure 
requires  to  be  almost  completely  reformed,  and 
our  civil  code  also  will  have  to  be  subjected  to 
drastic  alterations  if  it  is  to  be  made  really 
efficacious.  The  axe  must  strike  deep  into  this 
giant  tree  which  has  been  growing  for  a  century 
and  stifling  everything  that  lies  within  its  shade. 

96 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


The  heavy  charges  that  are  such  a  weight 
upon  landed  property  have  often  been  con- 
demned. Agriculture  is  taxed  more  heavily 
than  any  other  industry — it  is  the  beast  of 
burden  of  the  Treasury,  as  some  one  has  called 
it.  It  is  not  easy  to  calculate  exactly  how 
much  it  has  to  bear,  so  multifarious  are  the 
various  rates  and  taxes  by  which  it  is  affected. 
This  task  has,  however,  been  undertaken  from 
different  sides  with  great  precision.  In  par- 
ticular, the  calculation  which  was  made  some 
time  ago  by  M.  de  Lucay  has  of  late  been  pro- 
ceeded with  by  M.  Fouquet  in  a  communication 
made  by  him  to  the  National  Society  of  Agri- 
culture, published  in  the  Journal  d?  Agriculture 
for  August  20  and  27,  1904.  M.  Fouquet  begins 
by  showing  the  amount  of  direct  taxation  levied 
upon  the  agriculturist ;  the  land  tax,  the  door 
and  window  taxes,  the  various  charges  and  duties 
upon  personal  property,  the  stamp  duties  upon 
deeds,  the  tax  upon  mainmorte  goods,  etc.  ; 
the  total  for  the  whole  of  France  amounts  to 
411,000,000  francs. 

The  411  millions  are  borne  by  a  revenue 
which  M.  Fouquet  estimates  as  2,397,000,000; 
but  this  revenue  is  already  enormously  weighted 
with  charges  that  reduce  its  figure  very  con- 
siderably. The  French  mortgage  debt,  which 

97  H 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


in  1894  amounted  to  14,000,000,000  francs,  places 
on  the  land  an  annual  charge  of  at  least 
476,000,000  francs,  which  reduces  this  revenue 
to  1,921,000,000.  The  411  millions  of  direct 
taxation  upon  this  figure  represents  no  less  a 
proportion  than  21  per  cent. 

But  the  direct  taxation  is  not  all.  There  must 
be  added  all  the  innumerable  transmission 
duties,  fees  in  connection  with  sales  and  lettings, 
succession  duties — all  of  which  amount  to  700 
millions  more.  M.  Fouquet  distributes  this 
amount  equally  over  agricultural  property,  town 
property,  and  personal  estate — a  method  of  cal- 
culation manifestly  to  the  disadvantage  of  the 
land,  as  the  droits  de  mutation  which  it  bears  are 
infinitely  higher  than  those  on  personal  estate. 
This  only  strengthens  the  case,  however,  when 
we  find  that  the  land's  share  amounts  to  296 
millions,  which  brings  the  total  taxation  up  to 
36  per  cent. ;  this  huge  proportion  being  known 
to  be  below  the  real  mark. 

M.  Klotz,  who  had  the  drawing  up  of  the 
agricultural  budget  of  1905,  makes  the  case  out 
worse  than  M.  Fouquet.  He  begins  by  estab- 
lishing the  fact  that  the  Frenchman  is  more 
heavily  taxed  than  any  one  else  in  the  world  : 
he  pays  83  francs  per  head,  15  francs  more,  that 
is,  than  the  most  heavily  taxed  foreigner.  The 

98 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


French  agriculturist  pays  on  an  average  138 
francs. 

He  then  proceeds  to  analyse  the  charges  of 
all  kinds  that  fall  upon  the  land.  To  begin  with, 
he  demonstrates  that,  partly  to  the  State,  partly 
to  the  departement  and  commune,  it  pays  21*80 
francs  per  cent,  of  its  revenue ;  he  proceeds,  how- 
ever, like  M.  Fouquet,  to  deal  with  the  mortgage 
debts,  which  he  reckons  at  15,000,000,000  francs, 
involving  600,000,000  as  interest,  400,000,000  of 
which  falls  upon  land  not  built  upon,  equivalent 
to  another  20  per  cent,  on  the  agricultural 
revenue. 

M.  Klotz,  having  added  another  i  per  cent, 
for  the  expense  of  records  required  by  the 
public  officials,  comes  to  the  conclusion  that, 
taken  all  together,  the  charges  which  the  land 
must  meet  before  producing  a  penny  of  profit 
represents  41  per  cent,  on  the  revenue. 

In  the  second  part  of  his  study,  M.  Klotz,  in 
order  to  bring  out  still  more  completely  the  real 
situation  of  agriculture,  adds  to  these  particulars 
of  the  charges  on  the  land  a  record  of  the  charges 
upon  the  personal  estate.  He  finds  that,  ac- 
cording to  statistics  published  by  the  Registra- 
tion Department  for  1903,  personal  estate  paid 
265,000,000  for  transmission  duties,  stamp  duties, 
revenue  taxes,  taxes  upon  stock  exchange 

99 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


operation,  succession  duties — which  upon  a 
revenue  of  3,436,000,000  comes  to  7*59  francs  in 
the  loo.  Therefore  the  land  is  taxed  relatively 
more  than  five  times  as  much  as  personal  estate. 
It  is  not  surprising,  therefore,  if  capital  be  de- 
flected from  agriculture  into  personal  estate 
securities,  and  that  landed  property  in  France 
has  decreased  20  per  cent,  in  value,  while  per- 
sonal estate  has  increased  50  per  cent. 

Of  all  the  burdens  upon  agriculture,  the 
most  unjustifiable  economically,  and  the  most 
crushing,  though  not  actually  the  heaviest,  is 
the  transmission  tax  with  its  train  of  formalities 
of  all  kinds;  this  is  the  principal  cause  of 
discouragement  to  landowners,  and  especially 
to  male  landowners.  It  is  on  this  side  that 
the  first  fiscal  reforms  should  be  undertaken  in 
order  to  rid  agriculture  of  the  bonds  by  which 
it  is  being  strangled,  and  to  give  it  the  freedom 
now  enjoyed  by  personal  estate. 

We  should  not  go  so  far  as  to  advocate 
the  placing  of  land  upon  actually  the  same 
basis  as  personal  estate.  That  would  be  ac- 
companied by  drawbacks,  and  would  lead  to 
undesirable  speculations.  We  do  think,  how- 
ever, that  it  could  be  set  free  from  its  present 
shackles  and  made  more  easily  transferable. 
Certain  governments  have  already  moved  in 

100 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


this    direction,   and  it  would  be  easy  to  pro- 
ceed further. 

In  the  mean  time  would  it  not  be  possible 
to  benefit  the  land  by  extending  to  it  the 
simplified  procedure  in  regard  to  purge  and 
realisation  du  gage,  which  is  the  special  privi- 
lege of  the  Credit  Foncier?  And  could  not 
the  droit  de  mutation  be  at  once  altered  and 
diminished?  Is  it  not  regrettable  that  this  tax, 
which  throughout  the  rest  of  Europe  varies 
from  i  to  3  per  cent,  should  reach  in  France 
6*88  per  cent,  and  with  the  stamp  duty  10  per 
cent.  ?  What  is  there  to  prevent  the  droit  de 
mutation  from  being  transformed  into  a  single 
taxe  d'abonnementy  as  has  been  done  in  the 
case  of  mainmorte  property  and  in  that  of 
personal  estate? 

This  simple  transformation  would  mean  a 
great  step  forward.  The  payment  of  a  small 
annual  tax  would  be  infinitely  less  onerous 
than  the  immediate  disbursement  of  a  large 
sum  representing  several  years'  income;  if 
spread  over  a  great  number  of  years  this  tax 
would  fall  in  due  proportion  upon  all  the 
holders  of  the  property,  and  this  would  greatly 
facilitate  its  liquidation.  The  purchaser  not 
being  forced  to  pay  down  a  very  large  amount 
of  money  on  the  day  he  enters  into  possession, 

101 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


the  passing  of  the  land  from  one  hand  into 
another  becomes  much  easier. 

Unfortunately,  our  legislators  do  not  at  pre- 
sent seem  disposed  to  adopt  these  measures. 
On  the  contrary,  the  bills  now  being  brought 
forward  tend  rather  to  augment  the  burden 
land  has  already  to  bear.  It  would  be  easy 
to  demonstrate,  for  instance,  that  the  impot 
global  upon  income,  if  established,  would  fall 
with  all  its  weight  upon  real  estate,  which 
alone  cannot  elude  the  eyes  of  the  Treasury; 
it  will  be  another  premium  upon  personal 
estate,  which  is  so  easily  disguised;  the  rural 
exodus,  instead  of  slackening,  will  gather 
strength. 

If  the  intention  were  to  disgust  and  dis- 
hearten our  agriculturists,  no  more  ingenious 
method  could  be  devised.  They  are  sought 
out  in  the  midst  of  their  work,  already  so  full 
of  anxieties,  and  cross-examined  in  detail  as 
to  everything  they  are  doing,  what  they  are 
growing,  how  much  they  are  earning,  and  even 
what  they  eat.  Their  sensibilities  are  hurt  in 
every  way. 

Every  one  is  aware  how  difficult  it  is  to  get 
regular  accounts  out  of  farmers,  even  the  most 
intelligent  of  them.  This  is  not  because  of 
laziness  or  stupidity  on  their  part,  it  is  the 

102 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


outcome  of  distrust  pure  and  simple — to  un- 
willingness to  confide  to  any  one  the  secret  of 
their  affairs.  It  is  his  nature  to  work  from 
hand  to  mouth,  each  day  for  itself,  and  he  is 
disinclined  to  calculate  his  expenses  and  profits 
in  advance.  Experience,  perhaps,  has  taught 
that  his  expectations  are  too  often  all  upset  by 
the  caprices  of  the  weather,  and  he  feels,  there- 
fore, that  figuring  out  things  ahead  is  waste  of 
time.  He  prefers  his  woollen  stocking  to  the 
ledger.  When  it  is  full,  he  has  had  a  good  year ; 
when  empty,  a  bad  one.  That  is  all  he  knows, 
and  that  is  enough. 

This  is  the  man  we  are  to  call  upon  every 
year  to  furnish  a  debtor  and  creditor  account 
of  his  exact  income,  such  as  we  require  from  a 
merchant  or  a  manufacturer.  This  account  in 
itself  is  very  difficult  to  make  out.  Agricultural 
operations  are  not  those  of  a  manufactory  or 
of  merchandise,  which  are  concluded  almost 
always  by  certain  specified  dates;  they  may 
extend  over  long,  indefinite  periods.  The 
yearly  budgets  cannot  be  regularly  closed 
because  the  good  and  bad  years  overlap  and 
intermingle  and  cannot  be  divided  up.  The 
real  income  of  a  farmer  at  the  end  of  any 
single  year  is  almost  impossible  to  calculate. 
To  try  to  reckon  it  up  is  to  take  for  granted 

103 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


that  certain  operations  will  work  out  in  a 
certain  way,  whereas  the  results  may  be  quite 
different. 

The  Treasury  will  find  it  a  very  difficult 
matter  to  cope  with  our  farmers  over  these 
accounts.  We  pity  the  Government  charged 
with  such  a  duty. 

It  is  true  that  the  supporters  of  this  task 
have  no  fears.  They  hope  that  our  country- 
folk, always  pliable  and  obedient,  will  not 
have  the  courage  to  resist  our  all-powerful 
tax-collectors,  and  will  bow  their  heads  to  the 
inevitable. 

Possibly  it  will  be  so,  but  in  that  case  our 
victims  will  be  all  the  more  exasperated,  and 
we  are  much  afraid  that  their  ill-humour  will 
be  turned  not  only  against  the  gentry  who 
have  played  them  this  turn,  but  also  against 
the  soil  itself,  the  source  of  so  many  troubles 
and  worries,  and  that  they  will  abandon  it  in 
their  eagerness  to  get  out  of  the  clutches  of 
the  Treasury. 

If  we  want  to  form  an  idea  of  the  mental 
attitude  of  these  countryfolk  towards  State 
officials,  we  have  only  to  glance  at  what  is 
happening  now  in  the  case  of  the  distillers 
of  our  vin  du  pays.  Nothing  could  be  more 
suggestive  and  significant.  The  law  had  but 

104 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


to  authorize  an  administrative  visit  to  their 
vaults  to  put  them  into  a  veritable  state  of 
insurrection;  and  it  is  noteworthy  that  it  is 
not  the  smugglers  who  have  been  getting 
most  excited  and  indignant,  it  is  the  law- 
abiding  ones.  Their  anger  has  reached  such  a 
point  that  a  large  number  of  them  have  given 
up  distilling  and  allowed  their  fruit  to  rot 
rather  than  have  anything  to  say  to  the 
Regie. 

However,  the  inventors  of  this  income-tax, 
while  aware  of  this  danger,  hope  to  avert  it  by 
sparing  the  bulk  of  small  taxpayers— exempting 
in  the  small  communes  all  the  farmers  whose 
income  is  less  than  750  francs,  and  levying  only 
a  very  light  tax  upon  all  the  lower  grades  of  tax- 
payers. They  hope  thus  to  get  their  support  in 
the  struggle  against  the  minority  who  are  being 
mulcted. 

The  hope  is  vain.  The  majority  will  soon 
have  its  eyes  opened,  and  will  perceive  what  to 
expect  themselves.  They  will  realize  that,  once 
it  is  put  into  action,  the  law  will  end  by  includ- 
ing every  one ;  when  a  financial  snare  of  this 
kind  is  set,  every  one  gets  caught  in  it.  When 
the  Treasury  discovers  that  the  tax  is  not 
bringing  in  enough  money,  because  the  larger 
landowners  are  dividing  up  their  estates  to 

105 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


evade  it  (as  is  inevitable),  it  will  have  to  fall 
back  upon  the  lower  categories  and  ask  more 
from  them.  It  will  have  to  give  its  screw 
another  twist. 

This  income-tax  must  inevitably  have  the 
effect  of  increasing  the  depreciation  of  landed 
property.  Who  will  care  to  invest  his  money 
in  land  with  this  sword  of  Damocles  hanging 
over  his  head?  Every  one  will  want  to  sell 
and  no  one  will  want  to  buy.  Personal  estate 
and  foreign  securities  alone  will  benefit. 

VI 

The  weakest  point  in  connection  with  our 
agricultural  system,  putting  it  at  a  great  dis- 
advantage compared  with  our  manufacturers, 
is  the  backwardness  of  its  methods  of  sale ; 
efficient  selling  is  essential  to  any  industry 
that  is  to  be  prosperous;  its  profits  depend 
on  this.  Now  most  of  our  farmers  continue 
to  sell  in  the  primitive  old  fashion,  without 
ever  asking  themselves  whether  this  could 
not  be  improved  upon,  and  without  ever 
realizing  its  ruinous  effects.  Some  of  them 
take  their  goods  to  the  nearest  market  and, 
after  much  loss  of  time,  find  they  must  sell 
their  stuff  at  any  price,  no  matter  how  low, 

1 06 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


so  as  not  to  have  to  take  it  home  again ;  others 
hand  over  their  harvest  to  middlemen,  who 
speculate  in  it,  and  get  all  the  profit  to  be  had 
out  of  the  transaction.  The  total  loss  which 
results  to  them  from  their  lack  of  organization 
can  be  easily  enough  calculated.  We  have  but 
to  compare  the  price  paid  by  the  consumer 
for  the  chief  agricultural  products  with  the 
price  secured  by  the  farmer,  and  multiply  the 
difference  by  the  total  amount  sold.  The  result 
is  simply  stupefying. 

Let  us  take  the  case  of  butcher's  meat,  for 
instance.  We  all  know  what  enormous  profits 
are  made  by  the  butchers  in  the  big  cities, 
though  it  is  difficult  to  estimate  them  exactly 
on  account  of  the  number  of  factors  known 
only  to  the  butcher  himself  that  can  come  into 
the  sum.  These  profits  are  only  to  be  learnt 
by  becoming  one's  own  butcher,  which  is 
practicable  only  for  big  concerns. 

One  of  the  first  experiments  of  the  kind 
was  made  in  1892  by  the  Havre  Almshouses. 
A  careful  analysis  of  it  may  be  found  in  M. 
Felix  Alcan's  book  "Les  Questions  Agricoles." 
He  finds  from  his  examination  of  the  detailed 
and  perfectly  kept  accounts,  that  for  animals 
of  very  good  quality  the  cost  price  was  as 
follows : — 

107 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


For  beef        ......  1-44  francs  the  kilo. 

„   veal        ......  1-66       „ 

„  mutton   ......  1*87       „ 

......  1-53       „ 


The  average  price  comes  out,  therefore,  at 
i  "40  francs. 

M.  Zolla  proceeds  to  note  the  price  of  the 
tongues,  livers,  etc.,  and  finds  that  it  brings  the 
average  up  to  1*47. 

The  next  step  was  to  find  out  the  prices 
charged  by  the  Havre  butchers.  To  put  his 
comparison  beyond  dispute,  M.  Zolla  decided 
to  take  their  lowest  prices,  and  chose  those 
which  were  obtained  by  contract  by  the  Havre 
Lyc<§e.  The  price  for  meat  of  all  kinds  was 
i  '60  francs  per  kilo,  that  is,  19  centimes  higher 
than  at  the  Almshouse.  Supposing  the  difference 
had  been  only  ten  centimes,  the  Almshouse, 
which  consumed  134,000  kilograms  in  the  year, 
would  have  made  an  economy  of  13,000  francs. 
This  is  an  indication  of  the  additional  profits 
agriculture  ought  to  be  enjoying. 

M.  Zolla  adds  that  the  butcher  who  supplied 
the  Lycee  made  a  profit  of  at  least  15  centimes 
per  kilo. 

The  price  of  bread  is  more  regular  than  that 
of  meat,  and  bakers  certainly  do  not  make  such 
large  profits  as  butchers.  The  difference 

108 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


between  the  price  of  bread  and  the  price  of 
corn  varies  in  a  remarkable  degree.  The 
statistics  published  by  the  Ministry  of  Agri- 
culture show  that  the  difference  is  at  its  greatest 
when  corn  is  cheapest. 

In  regard  to  vegetables,  the  difference  is 
more  striking  still.  There  is  not  a  housekeeper 
who  does  not  groan  when  she  compares  her 
accounts  of  to-day  with  those  of  yesterday. 

The  cause  of  the  evil  is  well  known — it  is 
the  great  number  of  middlemen  between  the 
agriculturist  and  the  purchaser.  Every  one  of 
them  has  to  make  his  profit  out  of  the  merchan- 
dise, which  goes  up  in  price  according  to  the 
number  of  hands  it  passes  through.  The  farmer 
is  powerless  in  the  hands  of  the  middleman. 
He  has  not  time  to  look  about  for  purchasers 
himself,  and  he  cannot  hold  back  his  goods, 
either  because  they  would  thus  lose  in  value 
or  go  bad  altogether,  or  else  because  he  is  in 
actual  need  of  money  and  must  accept  whatever 
the  middleman  offers  him. 

We  should  not  think  of  contending  that  all 
these  middlemen  are  useless  and  should  be  done 
away  with.  On  the  contrary,  we  would  not 
have  the  farmer  devote  himself  to  the  selling 
of  his  goods,  which  takes  up  too  much  time 
and  energy  and  interferes  with  his  work.  We 

109 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


would  have  him  leave  this  task  to  others.  All 
we  contend  is  that  there  are  too  many  middle- 
men— four  or  five  where  there  should  only  be 
one;  and  that  these  middlemen  are  too  inde- 
pendent of  the  farmer,  and  work  too  entirely  for 
their  own  hands. 

If  these  points  be  conceded,  the  moral  to 
be  drawn  is  clear  enough,  and  the  remedy  to  the 
present  state  of  things  is  easily  found. 


VII 

It  is  to  be  found  in  co-operation.  Co-opera- 
tive societies  will  prove  themselves  in  time  the 
great  means  of  emancipating  agriculture;  they 
will  make  it  possible  to  get  the  maximum  of 
profit  out  of  its  products  by  bringing  buyers 
and  sellers  into  touch  and  eliminating  the 
parasitic  middleman. 

These  co-operative  societies  can  take  any 
shape  or  form ;  their  development  has  been  so 
great  during  the  last  few  years,  and  they  are 
now  so  many  and  various,  that  it  is  not  easy  to 
pick  out  any  one  example.* 

*  There  are  18,000  rural  associations  already  in  existence, 
not  counting  the  Socittts  d*  Agriculture  and  the  "  Committees." 
Of  these  1500  are  co-operative  fruiterers  or  cheese- vendors,  400 
co-operative  bakeries,  150  co-operative  dairies. 

1 10 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


The  agricultural  world  has  gone  into  the 
co-operative  movement  thoroughly,  perhaps 
more  so  than  any  other  industry.  It  will  not 
stop  short,  and  it  will  achieve  its  purpose, 
which  is  the  bringing  of  order  and  harmony  into 
the  working  of  economic  laws.  The  public 
authorities  understand  this  now,  and  do  all  they 
can  to  foster  the  movement.  Unfortunately,  the 
associations  for  selling  are  still  the  fewest. 

The  wine  producers  of  the  Midi  were  the 
first  to  take  this  new  road,  establishing  in  Paris 
and  the  other  large  towns  depots  of  which  the 
only  expense  is  that  of  an  office  under  the 
charge  of  an  agent  to  take  orders.  The 
expenses  of  advertisement  are  reduced  to  the 
sending  out  of  cards  and  notices.  In  addition 
they  have  instituted  depots  with  wine-shops 
attached.  These  involve  considerable  outlay, 
but  even  the  cost  of  one  of  these,  divided  among 
all  the  members  of  the  association  represented 
by  it,  is  trifling  compared  with  the  enhanced 
profits  secured  by  the  selling  of  the  wine  direct 
and  at  the  prices  fixed  by  themselves. 

The  example  of  these  wine-growers  was  soon 
followed,  and  every  branch  of  agriculture  is  now 
beginning  to  manage  in  this  way  for  itself 
without  the  interposition  of  the  middleman.* 

11  The  method  of  procedure  adopted  in  the  establishment  of 
III 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


We   shall   not    attempt  to    enumerate    the    co- 
operative associations  already  formed  in  France 

these  associations  is  very  clearly  set  forth  by  M.  Kergall  in  an 
article  in  La  Democratic  Rurale ; — 

"  Landowners  living  in  the  same  neighbourhood,  growing  the 
same  produce,  and  overcoming  the  old  feelingsiof  jealousy  and 
distrust  which  have  done  so  much  harm  to  our  agriculture, 
have  grouped  themselves  into  associations  numbering  10,  15, 20, 
up  to  60  or  80  members,  for  the  purpose  of  despatching  their 
joint  merchandise  en  bloc  during  the  season  to  a  trustworthy 
firm  of  commission  agents,  whose  business  it  is  to  dispose  of  it 
to  the  best  advantage. 

"  They  have  realized  that  in  this  way  they  economize  in  all 
the  expenses  involved. 

"  i.  They  benefit  by  the  reduced  tariffs  accorded  to  goods 
amounting  in  weight  to  50  or  60  kilograms,  smaller  consign- 
ments paying  the  tax  in  full. 

"  2.  They  do  not  suffer  from  the  custom  of  the  railways  in 
reckoning  parcels  which  weigh  only  22  or  25  kilograms  at  the 
round  figure  of  30. 

"  3.  They  are  able  to  save  also  in  the  cartage  expenses. 

"  4.  They  avoid  the  stamp  duties  and  registering  fees  upon 
each  separate  parcel. 

"  5.  They  economize  in  the  matter  of  the  transmission  of 
bills,  consignments,  etc.,  by  having  them  all  dealt  with  together. 

"  To  secure  this  result  they  despatch  one  way-bill  with  the 
whole  consignment,  specifying  the  various  packages,  each  of 
which  has  attached  to  it  a  ticket  with  the  sender's  name,  or  else 
merely  his  number — each  member  of  the  group  having  his 
distinguishing  number.  At  the  same  time  they  send  the  agent 
by  post  a  memorandum,  giving  the  name  or  number  of  each 
member,  with  particulars  as  to  the  nature  and  weight  of  his 
package,  so  that  a  separate  bill  of  sale  may  be  made  out  for 
each.  As  a  precautionary  measure,  a  duplicate  of  it  is  sent  in 
one  of  the  packages,  recognizable,  lest  this  should  go  astray  or 
be  delayed  in  the  post,  by  a  known  mark." 

112 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


during  the  last  twenty  years,  but  there  are  a 
few  to  which  it  may  be  worth  our  while  to 
devote  our  attention.  The  most  important  are 
those  for  the  production  and  sale  of  butter,  of 
eggs  and  cheese,  and  of  vegetables  and  fruit. 

The  co-operative  butter-factories  offer  advan- 
tages to  the  producer  that  cannot  fail  to  be 
recognized.  A  farmer  making  his  own  butter 
gets  3  kilograms  out  of  100  litres  of  milk — 33 
litres  to  the  kilo.  Now,  the  co-operative 
establishments,  thanks  to  their  perfected 
utensils,  get  a  kilo  out  of  26  or  28  litres.  And 
that  is  not  all.  In  addition  to  the  economy  in 
the  raw  material,  there  is  also  an  economy  of 
time  which  is  not  to  be  despised;  it  is  only 
natural  that  much  less  time  should  be  required 
to  deal  with  1000  litres  of  milk  in  a  single 
establishment  than  in  eighty  or  one  hundred 
different  ones. 

Needless  to  add  that  as  the  butter  is  made 
every  day  from  fresh  cream,  instead  of  two  or 
three  times  a  week  from  cream  that  is  turning 
sour  and  with  imperfect  utensils,  the  co-opera- 
tive butter  is  always  superior  and  of  prime 
quality. 

And  it  is  not  merely  in  the  production  of 
the  butter  that  these  co-operative  associations 
benefit  the  farmer,  but  also  in  the  selling  of  it. 

113  I 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


They  find  him  purchasers  both  at  home  and  on 
distant  markets  abroad.* 

The  Charente  and  Poitou  district  contains 
ninety-eight  of  these  establishments,  represent- 
ing nearly  50,000  farmers  with  a  total  of  about 
130,000  cows.  The  average  production  of  this 
important  group  comes  to  200,000,000  litres  of 
milk,  equivalent  to  10,000,000  kilos  of  butter, 
worth  from  27  to  30  million  francs ;  it  is  from 
this  group  that  Paris  receives  half  its  immense 
supply. 

The  production  of  cheese  upon  this  co- 
operative basis  presents  the  same  advantages. 
The  French  associations  for  producing  cheese 
that  came  first  into  existence  are  in  the  Jura  and 
Franche-Comte,  where  they  practically  have  the 
monopoly  of  Gruyere.  These  cheese-manu- 
facturing establishments  offer  more  or  less  the 
same  rate  of  profit  as  those  for  butter.  Milk 
that  brings  in  the  individual  farmer  from  6 
to  8  centimes,  produces  from  n  to  12  when 

*  It  appears  from  an  inquiry  made  by  the  Minister  for 
Agriculture  in  1902,  that  there  are  in  France  2000  establish- 
ments producing  fresh  butter  for  sale ;  66 1  of  these  are 
organized  on  a  co-operative  basis,  1339  belonging  to  in- 
dividuals. Their  total  production  is  estimated  at  62,000,000 
francs.  As  the  annual  production  of  butter  for  the  whole  of 
France  is  estimated  at  300,000,000  francs,  it  is  evident  that 
there  is  still  a  wide  field  for  enterprise. 

114 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


in   the    hands   of   these  fruitieres,   as  they  are 
designated. 

.  But  the  development  of  the  fruittires  is  far 
behind  that  of  the  butter-factories ;  their  number 
remains  stationary  somewhere  about  2500,  and 
they  have  not  extended  much  beyond  the  <//- 
partements  in  which  they  originated.  This  is 
attributed  to  lack  of  enough  capital  to  enable 
them  to  pay  cash  down  to  the  farmers,  who  are 
obliged  to  wait  for  their  money  until  the 
fruitteres  have  effected  their  sales.  This  places 
them  at  a  disadvantage  compared  with  the 
private  cheese-producers,  who  pay  at  least  once 
a  month  for  the  milk  they  use. 

Among  the  great  co-operative  associations 
which,  by  undertaking  the  sale  of  produce,  have 
entirely  done  away  with  the  greedy  middleman, 
may  be  mentioned  that  of  the  gardeners  of 
Nantes,  which  operates  so  largely  upon  the 
English  market.  The  syndicate  of  the  gardeners 
of  Hyeres  despatches  large  consignments  of 
vegetables  and  flowers  to  Paris  and  all  the  large 
towns.  That  of  Lauris  disposes  of  asparagus, 
that  of  Quincy-Segy  deals  with  plums  and  black 
currants.  That  of  Mentone  sells  lemons  at  the 
rate  of  more  than  two  millions  a  year ;  thanks  to 
it,  the  best  lemons,  which  used  to  sell  at  6  francs 
per  1000,  now  fetch  11  francs. 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


The  co-operative  societies  of  the  agri- 
culturists of  the  Puy-de-Dome,  and  those  of  Lot- 
et-Garonne,  of  the  Alpes  and  of  Provence,  which 
extend  over  seven  departments  and  comprise 
1 88  syndicates,  and  the  society  of  the  "  Syndicats 
du  Sud-Est"  should  also  be  mentioned. 

The  syndicate  of  the  growers  of  early 
vegetables,  founded  in  1901,  has  established  a 
co-operative  association  for  the  purpose  of 
sharing  the  use  of  a  stall  in  the  Halles.  Its 
representative  is  to  be  seen  at  pavilion  No.  6, 
ready  to  accept  all  orders  for  consignment 
abroad.  That  is  a  new  and  ingenious  idea 
which  is  calculated  to  have  developments. 

The  central  syndicate  of  the  Agriculturists 
of  France  has  secured  special  facilities  in  the 
Villette  market  for  disposing  of  cattle  and  of 
farm-produce  of  all  kinds.  Finally,  the  Agri- 
cultural Union  of  France,  a  company  with  a 
capital  of  1,100,000  francs,  undertakes  the  sale 
on  commission  of  the  produce  consigned  to  it 
by  the  syndicates  or  even  by  individual  farmers, 
to  whom  it  allots  a  20  per  cent,  royalty  on  its 
profits.  But  what  the  co-operative  associations 
do  for  agriculture  in  the  matter  of  sales  here  at 
home,  is  nothing  compared  with  what  they  might 
do  for  it  on  the  foreign  markets.  The  world- 
wide competition  has  grown  to  such  a  degree 

116 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


that  the  struggle  can  no  longer  be  carried  on  by 
individuals.  We  must  call  upon  our  associa- 
tions to  do  battle  for  us  against  all  the  powerful 
associations  arrayed  against  us.  It  is  because, 
in  spite  of  warnings,  we  have  not  yet  realized 
the  importance  of  doing  this  that  we  have  been 
losing  ground. 

We  are  being  distanced  by  a  number  of  great 
countries,  notably  by  the  United  States,  Canada, 
and  Italy,  and  even  by  quite  small  countries  like 
Denmark,  Sweden,  and  Belgium,  all  of  whom  are 
doing  their  best  to  supplant  us  everywhere  with 
the  help  of  their  agricultural  associations. 

To  the  list  of  these  rivals  we  must  add 
Australia,  New  Zealand,  and  the  Argentine 
Republic,  which  exports  butter  from  the  fertile 
plains  of  Rio  Plata  in  highly  perfected  cold 
storage  compartments  on  swift  mail-boats.  Not 
long  ago,  the  steamship  Nile  unloaded  7500 
casks  of  fresh  and  salt  butter,  which  was 
sampled  and  found  excellent. 

On  the  English  market,  where  twenty  years 
ago  we  came  first  in  regard  to  butter,  we  now 
come  only  third.  Our  exports  had  fallen  in  1900 
to  44,000,000  francs,  while  those  of  Denmark  had 
risen  to  22,600,000.  Our  exports  of  eggs  have 
gone  down  50  per  cent. ;  from  the  first  place  we 
have  sunk  to  the  fifth,  our  exports  amounting  now 

117 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


to  12,000,000  francs  instead  of  167,000,000.  Our 
exports  of  cheese  come  to  barely  1,500,000, 
though  England  alone  buys  178,000,000  francs' 
worth.  We  export  only  2,610,000  francs'  worth 
of  meat  to  England;  Denmark,  with  its  26  co- 
operative slaughter-houses,  exports  100,000,000. 

Meanwhile,  on  the  German  market  we  have 
allowed  our  place  to  be  taken  by  Italy,  .which 
sends  it  70,000  tons  of  fruit  and  vegetables,  and 
by  other  countries;  out  of  510,500  tons  of  fruit 
and  vegetables  imported  by  Germany  from 
abroad,  we  supply  only  43,000. 

The  principal  reason  of  our  decline  is  the 
lack  of  co-operation  among  our  producers, 
their  persistent  holding  aloof  from  each  other ; 
if  only  they  had  taken  note  of  what  was  going 
on  abroad,  it  would  have  been  easy  for  them 
to  see  in  what  lay  the  strength  of  their  com- 
petitors and  their  own  weakness. 

They  had  but  to  look  at  Denmark,  which 
has  become  one  of  our  most  redoubtable  rivals. 
Is  it  not  surprising  that  this  small  country, 
with  only  2,000,000  inhabitants,  and  with  a 
climate  infinitely  less  favourable  than  our  own, 
should  be  selling  to  England  400,000,000  francs' 
worth  of  agricultural  produce  ?  That  is  more 
than  we  do. 

For  the  sale  of  eggs  alone,  Denmark  has 
118 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


465  co-operative  associations,  which  collect  them 
from  all  the  individual  members,  and  then 
consign  them  to  the  central  body,  which  re- 
presents the  entire  country.  It  is  by  reason 
of  the  vigilant  control  exercised  over  the  quality 
of  its  merchandise,  by  its  powerful  organization, 
that  Denmark  has  made  such  strides  ahead. 
Its  exports  of  eggs  have  risen  from  134,000,000 
in  1894  to  464,000,000  in  1903. 

For  the  sale  of  butter  Denmark  has  five 
large  associations,  one  of  which  includes  eighty- 
four  dairies.  All  these  stamp  the  butter  exported 
with  their  own  trade-mark,  which  enhances  its 
value. 

It  would  be  unjust  to  pretend  that  France 
has  taken  no  steps  at  all  towards  establishing 
similar  institutions.  Something  has  been  done, 
but  not  enough.  Our  associations  are  still  too 
few  and  too  weak.  We  need  a  central  body 
which  should  be  in  touch  with  the  whole  field 
of  our  agricultural  exports,  and  which  could 
be  looked  to  for  guidance  and  stimulus.  As 
long  as  we  lack  this,  we  shall  continue  to  be 
distanced  by  our  rivals. 

But  in  order  that  our  associations  may 
engage  in  the  contest  successfully,  we  must 
arm  them  with  the  weapons  which,  at  present, 
are  being  used  effectively  against  us  by  our 

119 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


competitors.     Of  these  the  most   important   is 
economy  of  transport. 

The  need  of  quick  and  cheap  methods  of 
transport  for  agricultural  produce  is  universally 
recognized.  Goods  are  transported  in  Germany 
at  rates  25  per  cent,  lower  than  with  us,  and 
far  more  quickly.  It  is  absolutely  necessary 
that  our  railway  companies  should  decide  to 
introduce  improved  methods  of  transport — they 
will  find  themselves  repaid  by  the  development 
of  their  traffic ;  *  and  it  is  equally  essential 
that  our  agriculturists,  on  their  side,  should 
arouse  themselves  from  their  inertia,  and  form 
themselves  into  vast  and  powerful  associations, 
capable  of  treating  with  the  companies  and 
offering  them  appreciable  advantages.  In  this 
way  it  will  be  possible  to  bring  about  an  en- 
tirely different  state  of  things. 

VIII 

Much  is  being  done,  as  we  have  seen,  to 
educate  our  rural  classes,  scientifically  and 

*  It  must  be  admitted  that  the  railway  companies  have  not 
shown  themselves  entirely  indifferent  to  the  question.  Those  of 
the  "  Nord,"  of  the  "  Quest,"  and  of  the  "  Ceinture  "  have  just 
followed  the  example  already  set  them  by  the  Paris-Lyons 
and  the  Orleans  by  drawing  up  a  new  special  tariff  for  the 
accelerated  transport  of  vegetables,  which  will  give  great  satisfac- 
tion to  our  farmers  in  Normandy  and  Brittany. 

I2O 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


technically,  but  we  feel  that  this  is  not  all — 
that  we  must  strive  also  to  instil  in  them  a 
love  for  their  labour,  and  to  reinforce  their 
numbers  with  new  recruits.  For  this  purpose, 
a  different  order  of  education  is  required,  the 
chief  end  of  which  should  be  to  bring  out  the 
beauties  of  nature,  and  the  advantages  of  life 
in  the  fields. 

This  is  a  task  for  our  school  teachers  who 
have  the  modelling  of  a  child's  mind.  They 
need  not  be  poets — a  love  of  nature  may  be 
instilled  into  the  child  without  any  recourse  to 
lyricism.  The  simplest  lesson  in  natural  history 
or  chemistry  serves  as  well  as  a  poem ;  the 
study  of  the  great  phenomena  of  nature,  and 
the  marvellous  manifestations  of  animal  and 
vegetable  life,  raises  the  mind,  and  attaches  it 
to  the  soil  by  widening  its  horizon. 

Let  us  listen  to  what  M.  Louis  Passy, 
permanent  secretary  of  the  National  Society  of 
Agriculture,  had  to  say  upon  this  subject  in 
his  recently  published  work,  "  Agriculture 
devant  le  Science  " — 

"Everything  tends  to  convince  one  that 
agriculture  will  never  be  a  real  science.  Just 
as  the  art  of  medicine  deals  with  the  human 
body  with  the  help  of  all  the  natural  sciences, 
so  agriculture  deals  with  the  body  of  the  earth, 

121 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


but  neither  agriculture  nor  medicine  can  ever 
rely  absolutely  upon  the  outcome  of  its  efforts. 
Certain  rules  of  treatment  carefully  applied  are 
calculated  to  produce  certain  results,  but  these 
results  are  not  inevitable,  like  the  results  of 
chemistry  or  arithmetic. 

"  When  man  worked  in  haphazard  fashion, 
agriculture  was  a  trade;  but  it  has  become  an 
art  since  man  began  to  bring  his  mind  to  bear 
upon  the  work,  and  to  learn  how  to  exploit  it 
by  the  best  methods  to  the  best  advantage. 
Nature  is  an  untiring  instrument  of  production, 
working  away  by  itself,  following  out  mysterious 
laws  of  transformation  ;  but  she  can  do  nothing 
by  herself;  she  can  but  give  herself  generously 
to  him  who,  by  virtue  of  his  intellect,  is  lord 
of  all.  Man  is  lord  of  all,  but  he  also  is  power- 
less in  himself  and  by  himself,  with  Nature." 

There  is  another  branch  of  education  which 
would  contribute  greatly  to  the  improvement 
of  the  agricultural  career,  and  which,  un- 
fortunately, is  too  much  neglected  in  France, 
and  that  is  the  special  training  of  girls  when 
they  have  just  left  school.  If  a  young  girl  is 
left  to  herself  at  this  age,  she  is  apt  to  be 
repelled  by  the  rude  labours  of  the  farm,  and 
to  turn  her  eyes  longingly  towards  the  distrac- 
tions of  the  town.  This  is  the  psychological 

122 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


moment,  therefore,  to  give  her  a  taste  for  farm 
life  by  ennobling  it  in  her  eyes. 

Schools  of  housekeeping  have  been  estab- 
lished for  this  purpose  in  various  countries, 
and  in  them  the  young  girl  is  taught  how  a 
farm  is  managed.  She  is  made  to  realize  the 
importance  and  beauty  of  the  existence  of  a 
farmer's  wife,  and  all  the  interest  that  attaches 
to  it,  and  in  this  way  she  is  saved  from  the  lot 
of  the  wives  and  daughters  of  clerks  and 
functionaries.  These  schools  have  the  further 
effect  of  keeping  in  the  country  large  numbers 
of  young  men  who,  but  for  them,  would  be 
unable  to  find  wives,  and  who  would  have 
drifted  to  the  towns.  Of  all  the  methods  of 
fostering  the  return  to  the  land,  this  is  one  of 
the  most  effective. 

In  most  foreign  countries,  the  importance 
of  this  form  of  education  is  understood,  and 
schools  of  the  kind  now  described  are  now 
being  conducted  on  the  most  practical  lines. 
In  Germany  they  are  to  be  found  in  almost 
every  province;  and  in  Austria  there  are  a 
number.  In  England  there  are  horticultural 
schools  and  model  dairy-farms.  There  is, 
.moreover,  an  international  league  for  the 
purpose  of  stimulating  the  employment  of 
women  in  every  branch  of  agriculture. 

123 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


An  agricultural  institute  has  been  recently 
founded  in  New  York,  in  which  the  pupils  are 
given  a  similar  practical  education,  though  "not 
to  the  exclusion  of  the  social  arts  calculated  to 
make  of  them  attractive  companions  " — a  formula 
worth  our  remembering,  and  quite  to  the  liking 
of  our  young  Frenchwomen. 

In  Canada,  a  school  of  agriculture  for  girls 
was  instituted  in  1892.  The  pupils  are  taught 
how  to  manage  a  poultry-yard,  how  to  make 
butter  and  cheese,  and  how  to  keep  farm 
accounts.  The  model  farm  upon  which  this 
school  is  installed  covers  more  than  eighty  acres, 
and  is  worked  entirely  by  women. 

But  of  all  the  countries  that  have  taken  up 
woman's  education  in  this  direction,  none  has 
gone  so  far  or  done  so  much  as  Belgium. 

The  Belgian  Government  began  by  instituting 
courses  of  fifteen  lessons  in  domestic  economy 
in  all  the  agricultural  centres,  for  the  benefit  of 
women  and  girls.  To  these  it  added  later  a 
travelling  dairy-school,  which  is  located,  now 
here,  now  there,  for  three  months  at  a  time,  and 
which  brings  instruction  within  the  reach  of 
girls  who  are  unable  to  attend  the  ordinary 
house-keeping  classes.  The  regular  house- 
keeping schools,  which  are  of  more  recent 
origin  in  Belgium,  are  organized  in  three 

124 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


sections.  In  the  superior  section,  the  course  is 
very  thorough-going,  and  includes  careful  in- 
struction in  the  principles  of  hygiene  and  the 
study  of  bacterfology.  The  first  of  these  insti- 
tutions, at  Virton,  was  founded  in  1891,  and  it 
proved  so  great  a  success  that  nine  others  have 
since  been  established.  At  the  end  of  1898  there 
were  in  all  245  schools  frequented  by  9000 
pupils.  All  these  schools  are  attached  to 
special  farms,  which  the  State  merely  subsidizes. 

M.  le  Baron  de  la  Bouillerie,  in  his  report 
upon  the  Agricultural  Education  Exhibits  shown 
at  the  Exhibition  of  1900,  explains  that  what 
impelled  Belgium  to  activity,  was  the  knowledge 
that  the  lack  of  women  capable  of  managing 
farms  was  a  prime  cause  of  the  rural  exodus. 

When  shall  we  follow  Belgium's  example, 
instead  of  contenting  ourselves  with  the  very 
meagre  education  now  provided  by  us  ?  *  When 
shall  we  make  up  our  mind  to  provide  real 

*  We  have  only  three  schools  of  the  kind  in  the  whole  ot 
France.  Two  of  these — the  one  at  Coetlogon  near  Rennes,  and 
that  of  Kerliver  (Finisterre) — are  practical  schools  of  dairy- 
farming.  That  at  Coetlogon,  which  was  founded  twenty  years 
ago,  is  a  model  of  its  kind ;  it  was  here  that  the  Belgian 
women  got  their  training,  who  were  afterwards  the  first  mana- 
geresses of  the  Belgian  dairy-schools.  The  one  other  agricultural 
school  in  France  is  that  at  Monastier  (Haute- Loire),  estab- 
lished in  1902,  at  which  there  are  only  fifteen  pupils. 

125 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


agricultural  training  for  women,  evoking  in 
them  appreciation  of  the  life  of  the  country,  and 
making  them  realize  the  dignity  and  utility  of 
farm-work  ?  Of  all  the  reforms  yet  to  be  under- 
taken in  the  interests  of  agriculture,  there  is 
none  more  important  or  more  pressing  than 
this. 


126 


STATE    AID 


CHAPTER  VI 

STATE  AID 

I 

HAVING  examined  into  the  direct  methods 
to  be  employed  for  raising  the  status  of 
agriculture  and  making  it  more  lucrative,  let  us 
glance  now  at  those  indirect  means,  as  they 
may  be  styled,  which  are  able  to  exert  so  potent 
an  influence  in  the  same  direction. 

There  is,  to  begin  with,  one  great  source 
of  discouragement  to  the  agriculturist  which 
might  be  provided  against,  and  which  does  not 
trouble  the  prudent  man  of  business — the  fact, 
namely,  that  he  is  at  the  mercy  of  the  weather 
and  also  of  cattle-disease.  This  sword  of  Damo- 
cles spoils  his  existence,  and  often  is  the  cause 
of  his  forsaking  the  land,  and  taking  to  some 
more  secure  occupation,  in  which,  at  least,  he 
need  have  no  anxiety  as  to  the  morrow.  This 
is  in  part  the  explanation  of  the  notable  ten- 
dency on  the  part  of  young  farmers  to  seek 
employment,  no  matter  how  obscure,  in  our 

129  K 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


public  offices.  The  son  has  heard  the  father 
bemoaning  a  sudden  frost  that  has  ruined  his 
splendid  crops,  or  some  disease  that  has  carried 
off  all  his  cattle,  and  he  has  said  to  himself, 
"  This  isn't  the  kind  of  life  for  me." 

There  is  a  remedy,  however,  for  this  evil. 
The  agriculturist  of  to-day  is  able  to  provide  to 
a  great  extent  against  the  worst  calamities  that 
can  befall  him.  He  has  but  to  take  out  a  policy 
from  the  insurance  agencies,  so  largely  sub- 
sidized by  the  Government,  in  order  to  feel  at 
ease  in  his  mind  as  to  the  possibility  of  his 
wealth  in  cattle  being  suddenly  lost. 

Insurance  against  hailstorms  is  not  yet  so 
practicable,  there  being  at  present  too  many 
agencies  in  this  branch,  and  too  few  clients ;  in 
consequence,  the  risks  taken  are  high  and  the 
premiums  correspondingly  so.  There  is  room 
in  this  direction  for  developments  and  improve- 
ments. 

There  is  nothing  to  prevent  the  organizing  of 
insurance  policies  also — though  this  will  be  a 
more  delicate  business — against  the  dangers  of 
frost,  and  there  seems  little  doubt  that  they  will 
come  in  time.  Why  should  not  all  the  agricul- 
turists in  a  particular  district,  of  wide  extent, 
constitute  themselves  into  a  mutual  benefit 
society,  whose  end  should  be  to  indemnify,  at 

130 


State  Aid 


least  in  part,  those  members  whose  crops  were 
spoilt  by  the  frost  ? 

But  we  must  go  beyond  these  things,  and 
place  at  the  disposal  of  our  rural  population  all 
those  benevolent  institutions  hitherto  reserved 
exclusively  for  our  towns. 

It  must  be  frankly  admitted  that,  until  quite 
recently,  our  country  districts  have  been  entirely 
and  shamefully  neglected  in  this  respect; 
"  everything  for  the  towns  "  would  seem  to  have 
been  the  order  of  the  day,  the  programme  of  all 
our  ministries  and  all  our  parliaments.  The 
explanation  is  quite  simple.  The  people  in  the 
towns  constitute  the  most  active  and  important 
voters,  making  their  voices  heard,  and  securing 
obedience  to  their  wishes ;  and  their  needs  are 
admirably  served  by  a  Press  still  more  energetic, 
which  flatters  them  in  order  to  maintain  and 
extend  Jts  own  power,  as  well  as  by  innumer- 
able politicians  vieing  against  each  other  with 
promises  which  one  of  these  days  may  have  to 
be  fulfilled. 

The  Government  iis  afraid  of  them,  and  does 
everything  it  can  to  give  them  satisfaction, 
paying  little  or  no  attention  to  these  inarticulate 
peasants,  who  are  so  resigned  to  their  lot  and 
whose  patience  is  so  wonderful. 

When  a  workman  falls  ill  or  meets  with  an 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


accident,  there  are  hospitals  to  welcome  him  and 
the  most  skilful  doctors  and  surgeons  at  his 
service ;  if  he  sinks  into  destitution  and  cannot 
support  his  family,  there  is  State  aid  available 
for  him  and  assistance  from  all  kinds  of  philan- 
thropic institutions ;  if,  through  age  and  infirmi- 
ties, he  has  got  beyond  work,  he  can  go  to  an 
asylum  for  the  old. 

The  country  labourers  know  of  these  things 
nowadays,  and  it  is  because  they  know  of  them 
that  they  long  for  the  towns,  where  one  can 
always  rely  upon  having  a  kindly  hand  held  out 
to  one,  and  where  one  can  sleep  tranquilly  in 
the  thought  that,  in  case  of  need,  one  will  never 
be  at  a  loss  for  a  friend. 

If  we  are  to  keep  upon  the  land,  or  bring  back 
to  the  land,  not  merely  the  labourers  ajnd  small 
farmers,  but  also  the  small  landowners,  we  must 
try  to  do  for  them  what  is  done  for  the  towns. 
We  live  in  an  age  when  every  one  seeks  security 
and  ease  of  mind  before  anything  else.  This 
feeling  becomes  more  and  more  intensified  as 
the  struggle  for  life  waxes  more  and  more  fierce 
and  bitter.  The  day  when  our  rural  districts 
are  provided  for  as  our  towns  are  now,  the  cause 
of  agriculture  will  prove  victorious. 

And  it  is  to  be  admitted,  I  am  glad  to  say, 
that  during  the  last  ten  years  Parliament  and  our 

132 


State  Aid 


public  bodies  have  begun  to  understand  better 
their  duties  in  this  matter — perhaps  because  our 
rural  population  is  beginning  to  realize  and  to 
give  signs  of  their  political  force,  and  to  make 
their  voices  heard. 

The  advantages  they  have  won  are  not  to  be 
despised,  and  are  already  making  themselves 
felt ;  the  law  providing  them  with  medical  aid 
without  payment,  for  instance,  and  ithat  which 
helps  toward  the  upkeep  of  children  in  the  case 
of  the  poorest  families. 

These  things  are  a  good  beginning,  but  they 
are  only  a  beginning.  When  shall  we  have  the 
hospitals,  the  dispensaries,  the  almshouses  ?  It 
will  be  said,  perhaps,  that  it  is  not  practicable  to 
have  hospitals  in  every  village  in  France.  Doubt- 
less, but  it  should  be  practicable  to  have  a  small 
hospital  in  every  canton,  or  at  least  one  between 
several.  A  simple  farmhouse  could  be  utilized 
for  the  purpose — no  need  to  erect  expensive 
buildings.* 

*  In  the  Canton  of  Corcieux,  which  I  have  the  honour  of 
representing  in  the  general  Council  of  the  Vosges,  a  simple 
peasant,  endowed  with  the  soul  of  an  apostle,  took  it  on  himself 
to  do  what  neither  the  State,  nor  the  De*partement,  nor  the 
Canton  had  seen  their  way  to  undertake.  He  turned  his 
modest  dwelling  into  an  asylum  for  the  old  and  infirm,  whom 
he  picked  up  in  the  neighbourhood.  With  the  help  of  his  sister 
as  hospital-nurse,  he  carried  on  this  ungrateful  and  dishearten- 
ing work  for  a  long  time  alone.  As  he  was  not  well  off,  he  was 

133 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


II 

But  prevention  is  better  than  cure,  and  what 
is  above  all  desirable  is  that  our  working-classes 
in  the  country  should  be  taught  to  put  away  a 
little  money  during  their  good  years,  the  years 
of  robust  health  and  plentiful  harvests,  as  a 
reserve  for  their  bad  years  and  their  old  age. 
The  savings  may  be  minute  if  only  they  are 
begun  early  and  persevered  in  to  the  end.  Quite 
a  small  effort  suffices  to  provide  a  competence 
for  a  man's  declining  years  and  to  guarantee  his 
family  against  want  in  the  event  of  his  death. 

Unfortunately,  here  again  we  find  the  same 
disparity  between  the  state  of  things  in  the  town 
and  in  the  country.  Doubtless,  the  law  is  not 
exclusively  responsible  for  this  disparity;  the 
National  savings-banks,  which  provide  old-age 

obliged  to  get  his  patients  to  do  a  little  work  for  him,  and  each 
did  what  he  could,  thus  defraying,  in  part,  the  cost  of  mainte- 
nance. His  benevolence  met  with  its  due  reward.  The  good 
Nicolo  (such  is  the  name  of  this  modest  hero)  was  accorded  the 
"Prix  Montyon."  He  spent  the  money  in  developing  and 
improving  his  establishment.  Now  the  Commune  of  Corcieux 
and  certain  neighbouring  Communes  make  contribution  for  the 
care  of  their  sick,  and  the  State  has  now  shown  its  recognition 
of  him  by  granting  him  a  subvention  from  the  Part  Mutuel, 
Thus  the  Nicolo  Hospital  has  become  a  perfect  model  of  such 
rural  institutions.  Others  might  be  established  for  almost 
nothing. 

134 


State  Aid 


pensions,  are  open  alike  to  the  workers  in  the 
fields  and  the  factory  hands.  Neither  class 
makes  much  use  of  them,  because  the  Frenchman 
is  by  nature  improvident,  and  his  education  in 
economics  has  still  to  be  brought  about.  To 
induce  him  to  sacrifice  a  little  in  the  present  for 
his  security  in  the  future,  you  must  take  him  by 
the  hand  and  lead  him.  He  is  incapable  of  doing 
so  by  himself,  though  he  will  follow  with  the 
stream. 

In  the  world  of  manufacturing,  there  is  never 
any  lack  of  philanthropic  employers,  and  many 
great  establishments  have  organized  provident 
funds  for  their  workmen,  which  they  themselves 
support  generously,  requiring  the  men  to  con- 
tribute only  the  smallest  sums  as  an  earnest  of 
their  wish  to  put  by. 

But  if  the  first  impulse  came  from  the  manu- 
facturers, the  movement  owes  its  full  and  flour- 
ishing growth  to^  those  mutual  benefit  societies 
which,  since  the  beneficent  law  of  1898,  have 
been  extending  more  and  more  their  field  of 
action  in  regard  to  old-age  pensions,  and  which 
have  recently  been  making  such  immense  pro- 
gress. Thanks  to  them,  we  are  coming  within 
sight  of  the  goal,  and  if  only  the  Government 
does  not  interfere  with  them,  and  does  not  seek 
to  substitute  the  heavy  hand  of  the  State  for 

135 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


the  supple  energy  of  individuals,  all  will  be  well. 
There  is  no  reason  why  this  movement,  still 
confined  to  the  towns,  should  not  be  extended 
now  to  the  country,  where  private  charity  is  not 
munificent,  and  where,  in  consequence,  the 
mutual  benefit  principle  is  most  needed.  And, 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  an  effort  towards  intro- 
ducing them  in  the  rural  districts  is  now  being 
made. 

The  mutual  benefit  societies  will  lead  to 
savings-banks,  in  regard  to  which  also  a  begin- 
ning has  been  made.  Certain  large  syndicates 
have  laid  the  basis  of  an  organization  which  is 
now  in  full  working  order,  and  the  first  results 
of  which  are  most  satisfactory;  the  way  had 
already  been  opened  for  it  by  the  Gardeners' 
Mutual  Benefit  Society  of  the  Seine,  founded 
fifty  years  ago,  but  hitherto  unique  of  its  kind. 
It  is  not  until  1896  that  we  find  another  mutual 
benefit  society  created  by  the  Castelnaudary 
syndicate,  through  the  initiative  of  M.  de 
Laurens-Castalet.  And  it  is  only  since  1898,  and 
as  the  result  of  the  law  passed  in  that  year,  that 
the  movement  has  been  given  new  strength  by 
the  establishment  in  the  Charente-Inferieure  of 
two  other  such  agricultural  societies  taking  into 
their  operations  the  whole  of  the  dtpartement. 
The  Chateau-Thierry  Society,  founded  by  the 

136 


State  Aid 


distinguished  agriculturist  M.  Carr£,  is  another 
instance  in  point. 

The  strongest  combination  of  these  agricul- 
tural benefit  societies  may  be  said  to  be  repre- 
sented by  the  union  of  the  syndicates  of  the 
south-east,  a  body  always  in  the  van  of  pro- 
gress, thanks  to  the  initiative  and  indefatigable 
devotion  of  its  President,  M.  Emile  Duport. 
According  to  their  report,  they  comprised  in 
1904,  twenty-nine  certificated  societies  for  mutual 
succour  for  the  granting  of  pensions  in  illness  or 
old  age. 

When  these  associations  have  been  estab- 
lished all  over  the  country,  the  intellectual  and 
moral  transformation  of  the  agriculturist  will 
come  about  of  its  own  accord,  and  he  will  no 
longer  want  to  quit  the  soil;  even  those  who 
have  abandoned  Ut  in  an  access  of  ill-humour, 
and  who  have  experienced  the  life  of  the  towns, 
will  avail  themselves  of  any  opportunity  offered 
them  of  returning  to  their  home. 

For  it  would  be  a  mistake  to  believe  that 
the  peasant  is  dissatisfied  with  his  lot  simply 
because  he  is  worn  out  by  the  work  and  yearns 
for  a  more  comfortable  existence.  He  loves  the 
soil  too  much  for  that;  and  the  labour  it 
demands  from  him,  however  hard,  does  not  go 
against  the  grain,  for  it  is  interesting  and  full  of 

137 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


variety,  and  he  has  the  sort  of  feeling  for  it  that 
an  artist  has  for  his  picture.  If  there  were  not 
at  the  root  of  the  peasant's  mind  this  unconquer- 
able attachment  to  the  soil,  there  would  be  no 
one  left  to  cultivate  it. 

If  he  ends  by  giving  way  to  discouragement, 
that  is  because  the  work  does  not  recom- 
pense him  sufficiently,  because  bad  years  come 
oftener  than  good,  and  above  all  because  he  has 
no  sense  of  security  for  the  morrow.  Under 
the  pressure  of  this  anxiety  which  tortures  him 
unceasingly,  he  snatches  at  any  of  the  other 
careers  that  promise  him  the  certainty  of  a  roof 
to  his  head  in  his  old  age.  That  is  why  he 
becomes  a  postman,  or  a  railway  employ^  or  a 
customs-house  officer— even  a  street  scavenger. 
It  is  not  the  career  itself,  or  the  higher  pay  that 
tempts  him — it  is  the  provision  for  his  future. 
He  sacrifices  everything  for  this  one  considera- 
tion. 


Ill 

The  extent  of  the  rural  exodus  comes  out 
clearly  from  the  official  statistics  as  to  our 
agricultural  population.  These  tell  us  the 
number  of  peasant  proprietors  went  down  from 
1,134,000  in  1862  to  727,000  in  1882.  In  1902,  it 

138 


State  Aid 


had  sunk  to  589,000.  This  state  of  affairs  is 
lamentable  indeed.  The  remedy  exists,  luckily, 
and  for  a  long  time  past  has  been  known  and 
put  into  practice.  It  came  to  us  from  America 
under  the  name  of  "  Homestead,"  or  "  rights  ot 
the  family,"  a  kind  of  democratic  endowment, 
created  for  the  benefit  of  the  very  poor,  to 
guarantee  them  an  untroubled  fireside,  sheltered 
from  the  storms  of  life. 

The  house  and  bit  of  land  constituting  this 
" homestead"  form  an  inalienable  patrimony. 
It  cannot  fall  into  the  hands  of  creditors  except 
under  certain  specified  circumstances.  The 
father  of  the  family  can  get  his  belongings 
constituted  a  homestead,  simply  by  making  a 
certain  set  declaration.  Thenceforward  he  him- 
self cannot  make  away  with  it  or  mortgage  it 
without  the  written  consent  of  his  wife.  After 
his  death,  the  homestead  remains  undivided 
in  the  hands  of  his  widow  and  children  under 
age. 

In  England,  the  country  of  large  landowners, 
the  Government  employs  different  methods  for 
democratising  the  division  of  land.  The  County 
Councils  and  the  municipalities  make  purchases 
of  land,  which  they  dispose  of  in  allotments  at 
very  low  prices  to  workmen  and  small  farmers. 

In  Norway  and  Sweden,  in  Denmark  and  in 
139 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


Switzerland,  the  State  itself,  through  the 
medium  of  loan  societies,  advances  money  to 
labourers  to  enable  them  to  become  proprietors. 

In  Germany,  the  small  landowner,  by 
making  a  declaration,  can  prevent  the  dividing 
up  of  his  property  on  his  decease.  He  may 
bequeath  it  to  one  of  his  heirs,  subject  to  a 
payment  by  way  of  compensation  to  the  co- 
heirs. This  system,  known  by  the  name  of 
Auerbenrecht,  has  the  disadvantage  of  driving  the 
co-heirs  to  the  towns,  and  often  of  forcing  the 
heir  either  to  go  into  debt  or  actually  to  sell 
the  property  in  order  to  raise  enough  money 
to  pay  the  compensation  money  imposed  upon 
him. 

In  France,  matters  could  be  arranged  more 
easily  than  anywhere  else.  Ours  is  a  country  of 
small  farms,  where  there  is  never  any  difficulty 
in  getting  land  cheap.  Doubtless  it  is  not  as 
yet  accessible  to  everybody ;  some  small  capital 
is  required,  but  nothing  could  be  easier  than  to 
advance  to  would-be  purchasers  the  quite  small 
sum  required. 

The  experience  of  the  agricultural  mutual 
loan  societies,  extending  now  over  a  period  of 
ten  years,  is  there  to  tell  us  that  there  is  no 
more  conscientious  debtor  than  the  agriculturist ; 
if  he  does  not  always  pay  on  the  date  fixed,  he 

140 


State  Aid 


always  pays  in  the  end.    The  bad  debts  of  these 
institutions  are  insignificant. 

The  problem  has  been  under  consideration 
for  so  long  in  France  that  it  is  remarkable  it  has 
not  yet  been  solved.  Numerous  proposals  are 
put  before  Parliament  under  every  new  ministry. 
After  that  of  M.  Leveille",  brought  forward  in 
1895,  the  most  important  and  most  carefully 
thought  out  is  certainly  that  of  the  Abbe"  Lemire. 
And  M.  Ruan,  our  present  Minister  of  Agri- 
culture, has  recently  submitted  a  very  thorough- 
going bill  dealing  with  the  subject. 

According  to  this  measure,  carefully  elabo- 
rated by  the  Council  of  State  after  its  examina- 
tion in  the  Courts  of  Appeal,  the  document 
establishing  the  "  Bien  de  Famille,"  to  cover  real 
estate  to  the  maximum  value  of  8000  francs,  is 
received  by  a  notary,  and  due  legal  publicity  is 
given  to  it  by  its  transcription  at  the  Mortgage 
Office  together  with  a  manuscript  announcement 
at  the  Town  Hall.  In  principle  the  "Bien"  is 
declared  to  be  inalienable  and  not  to  be  mort- 
gaged; but  the  qualifications  are  so  numerous 
that  it  is  questionable  whether  its  efficacy  be  not 
destroyed.  Thus,  the  "  Bien "  may  be  seized 
when  a  debt  has  been  contracted  for  goods 
supplied  within  six  months  by  retail  tradesmen, 
such  as  butchers,  bakers,  and  grocers.  That  is 

141 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


a  very  elastic  and  very  dangerous  exception, 
which  is  open  to  abuses,  and  which  may  allow 
the  bailiff  to  come  in  by  the  window  when  shut 
out  at  the  door. 

The  proprietor  retains  also  the  unfettered 
right,  according  to  this  measure,  to  sell  his 
"  Bien  "  with  the  consent  of  his  wife,  which,  of 
course,  he  can  always  secure.  He  can  sell  it  the 
day  after  it  has  been  so  constituted,  or  at  any 
subsequent  period.  This  gives  his  creditors  a 
certain  power  over  him.  To  protect  him  against 
their  assaults  and  against  his  own  weakness, 
would  it  not  be  possible  to  fix  a  certain  period 
within  which  this  right  of  sale  could  not  be 
exercised?  It  can  hardly  be  objected  that  this 
would  be  a  blow  at  the  rights  of  property.  No 
one  is  obliged  to  have  his  property  rendered 
inalienable,  and  if  this  privilege  be  accorded,  the 
legislature  is  surely  entitled  to  attach  to  it  con- 
ditions without  which  the  object  in  view  could 
not  be  attained. 

The  establishment  of  the  "  Bien  de  Famille  " 
will  not  only  be  profitable  to  agricultural 
labourers  and  peasant  proprietors,  to  whom  it 
will  mean  freedom  from  anxiety,  and  to  the 
larger  landowners,  for  whom  it  will  be  the  means 
of  providing  an  abundance  of  the  best  manual 
labour,  it  will  also  have  a  most  beneficial  effect 

142 


State  Aid 


upon  our  social  life  generally,  and  prove  the 
most  solid  guarantee  of  the  tranquillity  of  the 
land. 

Boissy  d'Anglas,  in  his  famous  report  to  the 
National  Convention  of  5  Messidor  year  III,  set 
forth  the  political  and  social  role  of  the  rights  of 
property  in  clear  relief,  and  made  clear  to  the 
Governments  of  the  future  its  beneficent  effects. 
"  A  country  governed  by  proprietors,"  he  said, 
"  is  in  a  state  of  society ;  one  governed  by  non- 
proprietors  is  in  a  state  of  nature."  This  eternal 
truth,  according  to  which  property  is  the  corner- 
stone of  well-ordered  communities,  is  the  con- 
demnation of  the  Collectivist  doctrine,  according 
to  which  individual  ownership  should  be  replaced 
by  the  ownership  of  all ;  it  points  the  way  to  the 
Democratic  State,  showing  it  its  duty  to  ex- 
tend indefinitely  the  field  of  individual  property 
by  making  it  accessible  to  all. 

The  "  Homestead  "  will  have  an  advantage  of 
another,  priceless  kind,  in  that  it  will  meet  one 
of  the  chief  hindrances  to  the  return  to  the  land 
—the  impossibility  of  ensuring  the  labourer 
permanent  employment.  The  great  agricultural 
enterprises  are  by  their  very  nature  intermittent, 
and  the  labourer,  under  this  new  rtgime,  will  be 
able  to  devote  to  his  own  holding  the  time  he  is 
not  earning  wages  in  the  service  of  others.  He 

143 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


will  double  the  role  of  day  labourer  with  that  of 
small  farmer. 

There  is  another  force  which  is  destined  soon 
to  play  an  important  part  in  the  evolution  of 
agriculture  —  electricity.  In  a  country  like 
France,  where  waterfalls  abound,  electricity  may 
produce  incalculable  results.  There  will  be 
nothing  to  prevent  the  installation  in  our  farms, 
even  those  most  remote  from  the  great  centres, 
of  motive  power  sufficient  for  many  industries. 
There  are  a  number  that  need  only  a  fraction  of 
horse-power,  and  there  are  small  dynamos 
which  take  up  very  little  room,  and  which  would 
be  available  for  several  machines.  These 
dynamos  make  no  noise  and  give  out  no  smell 
or  heat,  so  that  the  work  could  be  carried  on 
under  the  most  hygienic  conditions. 

From  the  standpoint  of  morals,  the  outcome 
of  this  new  development  should  be  more  con- 
siderable still.  Of  all  the  ways  of  enticing  the 
labourer  away  from  drink  and  vice,  there  is  none 
better  than  that  of  reconstituting  his  family  life 
by  bringing  about  work  in  common  in  the  home. 


144 


VILLAGE    LIFE. 
THE    PUBLIC    HEALTH 


CHAPTER  VII 

VILLAGE  LIFE.      THE   PUBLIC  HEALTH 

I 

T  T  7E  have  finished  now  with  what  we  may 
*  *  can  the  scientific  side  of  the  agricultural 
problem,  but  we  should  not  be  dealing  adequately 
with  the  question  if  we  were  to  stop  here,  and 
remained  in  the  dark  as  to  a  side  of  it  which  is 
too  often  overlooked  and  which  deserves  more 
attention. 

Man  is  a  sensitive  being  and  does  not  live 
on  bread  alone.  He  has  spiritual  needs  and  is 
never  happy  if  there  be  not  in  his  life,  however 
humble  it  may  be,  some  touch  of  idealism;  as 
education  and  civilization  advance,  this  form  of 
enjoyment  occupies  an  increasingly  important 
place  in  the  aspirations  of  mankind.  If  people 
get  through  more  work  than  formerly,  they 
require  also  more  intellectual  recreation  and 
amusement. 

These  new  needs  have  become  an  essential 
factor  in  our  agricultural  life  which  cannot  be 

147  L  2 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


overlooked.  The  country  is  more  and  more 
assuming  the  character  of  the  town ;  the  infinite 
facilities  of  communication,  which  now  enable 
the  peasant  to  get  into  town  as  often  as  he 
chooses  and  to  indulge  in  forms  of  pleasure 
which  were  until  recently  unknown  to  him,  have 
gradually  modified  his  ideas  to  such  a  degree 
that  his  village  has  come  to  seem  to  him  dull  and 
depressing. 

We  would  assuredly  not  dream  of  advocating 
the  introduction  into  our  villages  of  all  the 
seductive  and  too  often  immoral  attractions 
of  city  life — this  would  be  no  less  impossible 
than  undesirable ;  but  without  going  as  far  as 
that,  nothing  could  be  more  easy  than  to  impart 
to  our  village  life  a  little  more  brightness  and 
variety — to  do  a  little  more  for  the  mind  and 
for  the  eyes  —  to  increase  the  number  of 
occasions  for  wholesome  and  inexpensive 
pleasure.  What  is  there  to  prevent  us  from 
substituting  for  the  sombre,  stuffy  cabaret,  so 
lugubrious  of  aspect  that  it  really  drives  its 
habitues  to  drink,  a  neat,  clean  cafe,  elegant  and 
well-lit,  in  which  a  man  could  seek  rest  agreeably 
en  famille?  This  would  be  a  means  of  con- 
tending against  the  deadly  vice  of  alcoholism 
which  we  venture  to  commend  to  the  considera- 
tion of  our  temperance  societies.  They  could 

148 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

co-operate  in  this  work  with  the  agricultural 
associations,  which  are  eminently  well  qualified 
for  undertaking  any  form  of  amelioration  of  the 
conditions  of  village  life.  Other  such  innova- 
tions might  be  musical  societies,  shooting  clubs, 
and  gymnasia—all  calculated  to  lend  animation 
and  to  bring  people  together. 

All  these  things  are  easy  enough  really  to 
bring  about.  Why,  then,  do  they  not  come  into 
existence  ?  Simply  for  the  lack  of  men  with  the 
necessary  initiative  and  energy  to  set  them 
going.  The  countryman  is  by.  nature  timid, 
distrustful,  and  economical,  and  unready  to 
take  the  lead  in  any  kind  of  novel  enterprise. 
He  is  kept  back  by  his  fear  of  what  people  will 
say,  and  his  dislike  of  responsibilities;  but  he 
is  ready  enough  to  follow  a  good  lead  and  to 
join  in  when  he  sees  work  being  done  that 
strikes  him  as  useful  and  agreeable. 

Where  are  we  to  find  this  indispensable 
person,  this  bell-wether  to  lead  our  flock  ? 
He  must  be  a  bit  above  the  ordinary  inhabitants 
of  the  commune,  and  he  must  be  a  man  of  some 
independence  of  mind  as  well  as  of  means, 
capable  of  imposing  his  authority.  He  must, 
generally  speaking,  be  a  townsman  of  some 
sort,  with  all  a  townsman's  knowledge  of  the 
art  of  enjoyment,  whilst  imbued  with  a  keen 

149 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


interest  in  the  life  of  the  country ;  living  in  the 
country  a  great  part  of  his  time. 

The  type,  unfortunately,  is  now  much  rarer 
than  it  was  fifty  years  ago. 


II 

Side  by  side  with  the  irresistible  attractions 
of  city  life  there  is  another  cause  which  has 
helped  a  good  deal  to  stimulate  the  immigration 
into  the  towns  and  the  exodus  from  the  country, 
and  that  is  the  craving  for  employment  by  the 
State.  This  is  really  one  of  the  worst  maladies 
from  which  France  suffers,  full  of  danger  for 
our  future.  It  has  taken  on  larger  proportions 
during  the  last  twenty  years.  The  sons  of  our 
bourgeois  class,  followed  by  those  of  our  peasants, 
have  tumbled  over  each  other  in  their  frantic 
efforts  at  getting  into  the  civil  service,  while 
fathers  and  mothers  from  the  moment  of  the 
birth  of  a  son  begin  day-dreaming  as  to  the 
kind  of  post  that  will  suit  him  best:  that  of 
magistrate,  sous-prefet,  or  polytechnicien !  The 
whole  life  of  the  family  is  regulated  in  accord- 
ance with  these  grandiose  ambitions ;  they  must 
make  their  way  into  the  town  to  see  to  the 
education  of  their  small  prodigy  and  to  establish 

150 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

a  good  connection  for  him  before  launching 
him  on  his  career.  Thus  they  abandon  their 
country  home  for  good,  never  again  to  re- 
visit it.* 

This  lamentable  frame  of  mind  is  fortunately 
being  modified  profoundly  by  a  number  of 
causes.  The  violence  of  our  political  passions, 
which  does  so  much^  harm  in  other  ways,  has, 
at  least,  had  one  beneficial  effect  in  discouraging 
many  fathers  from  office-seeking  on  behalf  of 
their  sons.  The  spirit  of  persecution  which 
has  grown  up  in  parliamentary  circles  has 
brought  with  it  so  great  a  degree  of  instability 
into  our  public  service  that  people  are  beginning 
to  hold  aloof  from  it;  now  that  it  lacks  the 
absolute  security  which  was  its  sole  charm, 
it  has  no  attractions. 

This  tendency  may  save  us  from  many 
dangers  by  giving  back  to  our  bourgeoisie  the 
energy  and  virility  it  too  often  lacks.  When 
its  children  make  up  their  minds  to  enter  into 
the  battle  of  life  and  make  a  position  for  them- 
selves, when  they  decide  to  start  businesses  or 
cultivate  land  of  their  own,  at  home  or  in  our 

*  In  the  district  of  the  prefecture  of  the  Seine  alone,  we 
hear  of  30,000  applications  for  the  post  of  cantonnier,  7000  for 
that  of  office  boy,  5000  for  that  of  concierges  in  schools — over 
50,000  applicants  for  how  many  posts  ?— perhaps  400. 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


colonies,  the  naturally  strong  sap  in  our  French 
blood  will  begin  to  rise  once  more,  and  we  shall 
cease  to  be  a  flock  of  sheep,  and  begin  again 
to  be  a  race  of  free  men. 

There  will  be  a  means  of  hastening  this 
desirable  change  and  bringing  about  our  trans- 
formation, and  this  will  be  by  beginning  the 
all-important  work  of  decentralization — one  ol 
the  most  important  tasks  before  us  now  and 
entirely  neglected  by  Parliament.  This  must 
be  taken  in  hand  soon,  unless  France  is  to 
succumb  under  the  burden  of  taxation  and  its 
bureaucracy.  Why  should  we  not  apply  to  the 
services  of  the  State  the  formula  which  tends 
to  the  success  of  business  concerns,  and  which 
should  govern  every  branch  of  human  activity : 
a  less  numerous  personnel,  working  hard  and 
well  remunerated  ? 

Let  this  formula  be  put  boldly  into  practice, 
let  the  productive  forces  of  the  country  have 
the  benefit  of  all  the  intelligence  and  energy 
now  dormant  in  the  dull  atmosphere  of  the 
office,  and  we  shall  see  a  reflowering  of  agri- 
culture, strengthened  by  the  living  forces  of 
which  she  has  been  too  long  deprived.  And, 
at  the  same  time,  we  shall  be  bringing  back 
to  the  soil  the  capital  of  which  she  is  so  much 
in  want. 

152 


Village  Life.     The  Public  Health 


III 

For  it  is  the  desertion  of  the  land  by  the 
bourgeoisie  that,  by  narrowing  the  ranks  of  its 
purchasers,  has  led  the  bulk  of  the  capitalists 
to  class  rural  property  as  a  bad  investment  and 
to  take  their  money  elsewhere.  When  they 
see  the  well-to-do  bourgeois  giving  up  his  country 
estate  and  settling  in  town,  they  say  to  them- 
selves that  it  is  much  better  for  them  to  buy 
railway  shares  or  Government  bonds,  which 
will  always  be  negotiable,  than  to  encumber 
themselves  with  possessions  of  which  they  may 
be  unable  afterwards  to  dispose. 

On  the  other  hand,  when  they  see  the 
bourgeois  class  settling  down  again  in  the 
country,  and  taking  pride  and  pleasure  in  his 
estate,  and  its  members  vieing  with  each  other 
in  their  efforts  to  secure  the  richest  soil  and 
best  sites,  the  value  of  landed  property  will 
go  up  with  a  rush.  This  is  made  certain  by 
the  fact  that  already  in  certain  parts  of  France, 
where  the  bourgeoisie  has  begun  again  to  seek 
out  pleasant  retreats,  there  is  to  be  noted  a 
considerable  rise  in  prices. 

The  tendency  in  the  world  of  finance  is  at 
present  all  in  favour  of  investments  in  land. 

153 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


The  value  of  personal  estate  is  going  down, 
while  that  of  real  estate  is  going  up.  There 
can  be  no  question  to-day  that  a  landed 
property  which  is  well  managed,  and  is  not 
stinted  as  regards  capital,  is  a  better  invest- 
ment than  State  bonds. 

The  manufacturing  industries,  of  course, 
still  retain  their  fascination  for  those  in  a 
hurry  to  become  rich.  But,  alas !  the  golden 
days  of  industry  are  gone  by,  and  will  never 
be  seen  again.  Industrial  profits  are  becoming 
daily  less  and  less;  to  be  convinced  of  this 
we  have  but  to  glance  at  the  reports  of  the 
countless  companies,  even  those  best  managed, 
which  for  years  past  have  been  yielding  con- 
temptible dividends  of  2  or  3  per  cent,  when 
they  have  been  able  to  declare  a  dividend  at 
all.  For  industrial  risks  are  increasing,  and 
side  by  side  with  the  firms  that  succeed  must 
be  placed  those  which  are  ruined,  or  which 
are  living  upon  their  capital. 

When  these  striking  comparisons  have 
been  fully  noted,  capital  will  begin  gradually 
to  forsake  industry  for  agriculture.  And  this 
will  be  a  great  benefit  for  industry  itself. 
Too  great  an  influx  of  capital  is  for  it  an 
irresistible  temptation,  drawing  it  into  undue 
efforts  and  expansion,  and  helping  to  bring 

154 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

about  that  state  of  over-production  for  which 
we  are  seeking  the  remedy. 

We  must  not  quarrel  with  capital  over  this. 
We  must  not  exclaim  "  Out  upon  capital ! "  as 
did  M.  Vaillant  in  the  Chamber  of  Deputies. 
No,  capital  is  a  benefactor,  and  M.  Vaillant  is 
ungrateful  when  he  attacks  it;  he  forgets  that 
it  is  capital  that  gives  employment  to  the 
labourer  and  enables  him  to  earn  his  wages. 
But  it  is  better  that  capital  should  not  settle 
exclusively  on  one  spot,  lest  it  should  thus 
help  to  create  a  disastrous  obstruction.  M. 
Vaillant's  mistake  is  to  condemn  capital  itself, 
when  he  should  be  condemning  merely  its  bad 
distribution — the  sole  cause  of  the  evil  he  de- 
plores; when  capital  is  well  distributed,  it 
will  continue  its  beneficent  work,  and  harmony 
will  be  restored  to  the  world  of  labour. 


IV 

Popular  literature  might  have  a  great  role 
to  play  in  this  work  of  moral  and  social  re- 
generation; it  might  help  largely  in  changing 
the  ideas  and  habits  and  character  both  of 
our  townsfolk  and  of  our  countryfolk,  and  in 
modifying  their  conceptions  of  life  and  of 
happiness. 

155 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


Unfortunately,  it  seems  more  and  more  to 
forget  this  noble  educative  mission.  When  it  is 
not  marked  by  a  pornographic  tendency  which 
is  one  of  the  most  pernicious  evils  of  our 
time,  it  is  apt  to  do  nothing  but  minister  to 
our  lowest  appetites  and  most  violent  passions ; 
it  spreads  out  before  our  eyes  a  mass  of  hideous 
scenes  as  though  in  the  endeavour  to  turn  men 
into  beasts. 

In  opposition  to  this  decadent  literature, 
fortunately,  there  has  been  coming  into  exist- 
ence for  some  years  past  something  very 
different — a  literature  of  the  future,  full  of  ap- 
preciation for  all  that  is  beautiful,  the  beauty 
of  nature,  the  beauty  of  strong,  sane  manhood, 
the  beauty  of  the  inner  life ;  it  appeals  to  the 
noblest  feelings  of  the  human  soul,  and  en- 
deavours to  reawaken  in  it  the  taste  for 
simplicity  of  life  and  the  joys  of  home. 

It  is  from  this  new  theme  that  M.  Rene" 
Bazin  has  drawn  his  striking  and  moving  scenes 
in  his  splendid  book,  "La  Terre  qui  meurt." 

Nothing  could  better  serve  the  cause  of 
morality  than  this  work,  which  deserves  to  be 
read  and  reflected  upon  by  everybody.  It 
would  make  the  sons  of  the  bourgeois  realize 
how  easily  a  man  goes  to  his  ruin  when  he 
runs  after  money,  and  is  not  content  with  the 

156 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

life  of  modest  comfort  and  security  that  the 
land  provides  for  those  who  cling  to  it.  It 
would  make  them  appreciate  the  advantages 
of  this  large,  serene,  independent  existence,  in 
which  a  man  may  find  the  maximum  of  well- 
being  to  be  got  anywhere  in  the  world. 

To  the  peasant,  tempted  to  give  way  because 
he  finds  the  work  too  hard  and  the  wages  too 
scanty,  it  would  show  that  in  the  towns  also 
everything  is  not  couleur  de  rose,  that  the 
pleasures  to  be  enjoyed  there  are  often  paid 
for  dearly,  and  that  at  every  step  misery  and 
despair  stand  in  wait  for  the  poor  wretches  who 
fall  victims  to  the  mirage  of  city  life. 

This,  indeed,  is  an  opportune  moment  for 
embarking  upon  a  crusade  in  favour  of  the 
land,  for  the  public  seems  disposed  to  listen. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that  there  is  a  spirit 
abroad  leading  our  countrymen  into  new  fields. 
The  reaction  against  the  life  of  the  town  is 
growing  stronger,  while  the  call  of  the  country 
daily  gathers  strength  and  is  becoming  irre- 
sistible. 

Everything    contributes    to    this    instinctive 
and  deep-laid  tendency  :   the  lassitude  of  our 
townsmen ;    their  weariness    of  a    life    always 
unwholesome  and  disturbed;  the   outbreaks  of 
political,    religious,    and    social    conflicts,    that 

157 

v 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


produce  a  craving  for  peace  and  quiet,  and 
make  men  turn  their  eyes  longingly  towards 
the  tranquil  countryside ;  above  all,  the  ruin 
of  constitutions  brought  about  by  the  ill-ordered 
existence  of  our  towns. 

For  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  principal 
cause  of  all  the  insidious  and  mysterious  mala- 
dies so  prevalent  to-day,  but  almost  unknown 
to  our  fathers — all  the  different  forms  of  nervous 
affections,  hypochondria,  neurasthenia,  anaemia 
of  the  brain,  and  tuberculosis — are  due  to  the 
vitiated  atmosphere  in  which  our  degenerate 
civilization  has  plunged  the  human  species 
during  the  last  half-century.  This  unnatural 
existence,  against  which  the  funds  of  health 
and  strength  we  inherited  from  our  ancestors 
were  "able  for  a  while  to  hold  out,  has  ended 
by  undermining  our  physique  and  baffling  all 
remedies.* 

Long  ago,  in  Emile,  Jean-Jacques  Rousseau 
prophesied  the  dangers  impending  over  the 

*  The  state  of  things  in  Paris  is  terrible.  It  appears  from  a 
communication  made  recently  by  Professor  Grancher  to  the 
Academy  of  Medicine,  that  one  out  of  every  six  children  attend- 
ing the  public  schools  suffers  from  consumption.  Another 
physician,  Dr.  George  Bourgeois,  has  demonstrated  very  con- 
clusively that  the  countryfolk  transplanted  to  Paris,  the 
dtracints  as  they  are  very  aptly  styled,  furnish  a  much  more 
numerous  contingent  to  death  from  tuberculosis  than  the 
Parisians  by  birth. 

158 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

generations  to  come.  "Men,"  he  said,  "were 
never  meant  to  be  heaped  up  together  in  ant- 
hills, they  were  to  be  scattered  sparsely  over 
the  soil  which  they  should  be  cultivating. 
Infirmities  of  the  body  and  vices  .of  the  mind 
are  the  inevitable  outcome  of  too  densely 
packed  masses  of  human  beings.  Of  all  the 
animals,  man  is  by  nature  least  gregarious. 
Men  penned  up  together  like  sheep  must  soon 
perish.  Their  very  breath  is  poisonous  to 
each  other — not  merely  physically  but  morally 
as  well.  Towns  are  the  abysses  of  the  human 
race.  At  the  end  of  several  generations,  races 
will  be  degenerating  or  perishing,  and  will  have 
to  be  renewed.  And  it  will  be  always  from 
the  country  that  the  renewal  will  come." 

Michelet  said  the  same  thing  more  succinctly 
and  with  a  charming  touch  of  poetry :  "  Of  all 
the  flowers,  the  flower  of  humanity  stands  most 
in  need  of  the  sun." 

The  art  of  medicine  is  at  the  end  of  its 
resources,  and  having  exhausted  all  its  means, 
has  come  at  last  to  the  same  conclusions  as 
these  two  great  thinkers.*  It  has  said  to  itself 

*  An  eminent  economist  who  is  at  the  same  time  a  philan- 
thropist of  boundless  devotion,  M.  Cheysson,  has  recently 
dealt  with  this  topic  in  a  very  remarkable  document  addressed 
to  the  Office  Central  des  CEuvres  de  Bienfaisance,  under  the 

159 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


that  to  suppress  a  disease  you  must  first  of  all 
remove  its  cause,  and  it  has  ended  by  proclaim- 
ing that  the  only  real  remedy  is  to  be  found  in 
a  return  to  nature,  to  the  life  for  which  we  were 
intended,  life  in  the  open,  with  its  peace  and 
quiet. 

Thus  it  is  that  fresh-air  cures  have  come  to 
be  the  basis  of  medical  treatments,  the  universal 
remedy  for  most  of  the  diseases  which  afflict 
mankind  to-day.  The  sanatorium  has  become 
ubiquitous,  it  is  to  be  found  everywhere.  In 
certain  regions  of  the  Alps  one  scarcely  knows 
where  to  take  refuge,  if  one  wishes  to  avoid  the 
neighbourhood  of  the  innumerable  victims  of 
the  malady  of  the  century. 

But  the  sanatorium  is  not  a  solution ;  it  is 
a  desperate  expedient  which  may  prove  more 
dangerous  than  the  evil  itself.  It  may  cure  the 
invalid,  but  it  may  propagate  the  disease  and 
cause  it  to  become  ineradicable.  What  is  pre- 
ferable to  the  sanatorium  is  individual  isola- 
tion— permanent  isolation  in  the  midst  of  the 
reinvigorating  pure  air  of  the  fields. 

If  "  nature  treatment "  is  not  always  enough 
in  itself  to  cure  inveterate  disease,  it  is  at  least 
an  infallible  system  for  .keeping  it  away.  All 

title  "La  Misere  provinciate  a  Paris."  The  remedy  he 
advocates  is  ours— the  return  to  the  land. 

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Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

you  who  are  in  fear  as  to  your  children's  health, 
who  live  in  perpetual  anxiety  at  the  sight  of 
their  pallid;  sickly  faces,  do  not  hesitate — if  you 
wish  to  save  these  little  beings  who  are  so  dear 
to  you,  have  the  courage  to  come  to  one  of  those 
great  and  strong  decisions  that  sometimes  mean 
the  saving  of  health  and  life.  Go  off  with  your 
children  to  the  fields,  and  try  to  leave  them 
there  as  long  as  possible— altogether,  if  you 
can.  Thanks  to  the  revivifying  bath  of  country 
air,  you  will  see  them  bloom  afresh. 


Much  has  recently  been  done  by  our  philan- 
thropists to  enable  our  working  classes  in  the 
towns  to  indulge  the  love  of  nature  which  has 
been  making  so  much  headway  everywhere. 
One  great  society  in  particular  has  done 
wonders  in  this  direction.  Founded  by  M. 
l'Abb6  Lemire  and  M.  Louis  Riviere,  following 
in  the  footsteps  of  that  large-hearted  woman, 
Mme.  Hervieu,  the  Workman's  Garden  Society 
has  undertaken  to  place  gardens  at  the  disposal 
of  workmen's  families  in  the  cities,  either  free 
of  cost  or  for  a  very  moderate  subscription  in 
cases  where  a  man  wishes  to  become  absolute 
proprietor  at  some  quite  low  price. 

161  M 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


The  idea  was  so  good  and  wise  that  it  soon 
won  the  support  of  generous  and  sympathetic 
minds,  as  the  results  of  ten  years1  work  suffice 
to  show.  In  1903  it  had  arranged  for  no  fewer 
than  6458  gardens,  distributed  among  294 
groups  of  workmen,  and  covering  in  all  more 
than  500  acres. 

The  movement  is  well  launched  therefore, 
and  everything  seems  to  promise  that  it  will 
make  its  way  into  every  part  of  France.  It  is 
to  be  hoped  that  it  will  go  deeper  too,  and  that 
it  will  help  to  cure  one  of  our  most  painful  and 
disquieting  maladies — that  of  vagabondage. 

On  the  i$th  of  December,  1807,  Napoleon  I., 
in  a  brief  access  of  philanthropy,  wrote  to  his 
Minister  of  the  Interior :  "  By  the  beginning  of 
the  season  of  beauty,  France  must  present  the 
spectacle  of  a  country  without  beggars."  Alas ! 
that  season  of  beauty  has  been  a  long  time 
coming,  and  the  number  of  beggars  has  multi- 
plied so  since  1807  that  now  they  constitute 
an  army  of  400,000  vagabonds  that  Napoleon 
himself  would  not  have  dealt  with  easily. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  way  in  which 
our  countryside  is  ravaged  by  these  vagrants, 
who  at  certain  periods  of  the  year  descend 
upon  it  like  clouds  of  locusts.  The  sense  of 
insecurity  involved  by  this  plague  has  counted 

162 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

for  a  good  deal  in  the  desertion  of  the  rural 
districts,  and  especially  in  the  depreciation  of 
isolated  estates. 

Unfortunately,  the  gendarmes  cannot  be 
everywhere,  and  no  matter  how  their  number 
might  be  increased,  they  would  always  prove 
insufficient  to  deal  with  vagabondage  until  the 
extent  of  this  trouble  has  been  reduced  within 
the  narrowest  possible  limits.  It  is  the  plague 
itself  that  must  be  coped  with,  if  it  is  to  be 
circumscribed  and  extirpated.  We  must  find 
some  means  of  rooting  these  vagrants  to  the 
soil  and  thus  putting  an  end  to  their  nomadic 
existence. 

The  country  that  has  best  understood  the 
necessity  of  this,  and  that  has  found  the  most 
ingenious  and  practical  method  of  carrying  it 
out  is  Holland,  long  famous  for  its  State  aids  to 
work,  and  especially  work  upon  the  land.  So 
far  back  as  1818,  General  van  den  Bosch  had  the 
happy  thought  of  finding  work  for  numbers  of 
unemployed  who  appealed  to  him  for  assistance ; 
he  built  a  series  of  farms,  which  he  placed 
collectively  at  their  disposal,  giving  preference, 
naturally,  to  the  most  hard-working  and  deserv- 
ing. To-day  the  society  which  owes  its  origin 
to  this  philanthropic  act  affords  employment  to 
over  2000  people.  That  is  nothing  very  great, 

163 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


assuredly,  even  in  a  small  country  like  Holland  ; 
but  the  idea  has  developed  greatly  and  borne 
other  fruit  since  1818.  A  law  of  1843  authorized 
communes  which  possessed  waste  lands  to 
dispose  of  them  in  allotments  at  reduced  prices 
to  people  out  of  work.  At  Francken,  the  public 
savings  bank  deals  similarly  with  ground 
belonging  to  it.  At  Uithuizen,  there  is  a 
benevolent  society  which  has  acquired  about 
sixteen  acres  of  ground,  and  divided  it  up 
amongst  197  individuals,  at  a  total  rent  of  833 
florins.  Certain  societies,  too,  have  made 
arrangements  for  enabling  tenants  to  become 
proprietors  on  easy  terms. 

We  could  cite  instances  of  many  other  such 
institutions  in  Holland,  but  enough  has  been 
said  to  demonstrate  that  there  is  no  better  or 
safer  way  of  preventing  vagabondage  than  by 
this  of  rooting  the  vagrant  upon  the  soil. 

In  France  we  have  hitherto  merely  lamented 
things  and  appealed  to  the  public  authorities. 
A  few  prefects,  not  wholly  absorbed  in  politics, 
have  given  their  attention  and  efforts  to  the 
matter.  The  one  who  has  achieved  the  best 
results  is  undoubtedly  M.  Alapetite,  prefect  of 
the  Pas-de-Calais,  who  has  understood  that  the 
only  way  of  dealing  with  the  vagabond  was  to 
find  him  work  and  a  settled  place  to  do  it  in. 

164 


Village  Life.    The  Public  Health 

He  began  by  instituting  a  dep6t  for  his  dfyarte- 
ment,  and  hence  all  alien  vagrants  were  sent  off 
to  whatever  other  dtpartement  they  belonged  to. 
Those  left  were  installed  in  yards  and  set  to 
work  breaking  stones,  at  a  wage  of  from  i  franc 
50  to  3  francs  the  cube  metre.  Women  were 
employed  plaiting  straw,  etc. 

The  expenses  involved  do  not  exceed  15,000 
francs  a  year,  a  small  sum  considering  the  ex- 
cellent results,  for  the  dtyartement  of  the  Pas-de- 
Calais  has  thus  been  set  free  from  a  veritable 
plague. 

But  such  methods  should  be  supplemented 
by  the  Dutch  system  of  State  aid  to  the  land. 
Why  should  not  small  farms,  subventioned  by 
the  Government  and  by  the  dfyartement,  be 
established  all  over  France,  and  be  allotted  to 
the  most  deserving  specimens  among  these 
tramps,  who  might  thus  be  transformed  into 
flourishing  small  tenant-proprietors  ? 


165 


ARTISANS    AND    PEASANTS 


CHAPTER  VIII 

ARTISANS  AND  PEASANTS 

I 

THE  problem  we  have  been  studying—that  of 
modifying  and  amending  the  present  con- 
ditions of  the  labour  market  by  restoring  the 
equilibrium  between  manufacture  and  agriculture 
—has  been  made  the  subject  of  a  very  profound 
study  by  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  leaders  of 
the  Socialist  party  in  Belgium,  Mr.  Vandervelde, 
in  his  work,  "L'Exode  rural  et  le  retour  aux 
champs,"  recently  published. 

M.  Vandervelde  has  been  impressed,  like 
every  one  else,  by  the  rapidity  with  which  the 
rural  population .  has  pressed  into  the  cities, 
there  to  stifle  and  come  to  grief;  and  he  views 
with  alarm  the  change  that  has  ensued  in  the 
conditions  alike  of  labour  and  of  the  home.  His 
examination  of  the  facts  under  his  eyes,  together 
with  the  statistics  he  has  drawn  up  so  con- 
scientiously, has  led  him  quite  close  to  the  truth ; 
and  he  would  have  arrived  at  the  truth  itself,  had 

169 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


he  not  been  under  the  sway  of  a  pre-conceived 
doctrine  which  has  entirely  falsified  the  results. 

For  M.  Vandervelde,  the  manufacturing  class 
is  far  superior  to  the  agricultural  class,  simply 
because  it  has,  in  his  eye,  the  advantage  of  being 
educated  according  to  Socialist  ideas  and  quali- 
fied in  this  way  for  taking  its  share  in  the  social 
revolution  now  in  progress.  The  peasant  seems 
to  him  an  inferior  being,  narrow-minded,  egoistic, 
obstinate,  impenetrable  to  new  ideas.  "How- 
ever great,"  he  says,  "  may  be  the  evils  engendered 
by  the  concentration  in  cities,  this  state  of  things 
has  at  least  the  inestimable  advantage  in  our 
eyes  of  wresting  thousands  of  individuals  out  of 
the  mental  inertia,  the  cribbed  and  cabined 
individualism  which  characterize  the  great  bulk 
of  our  agricultural  population." 

Starting  from  this  standpoint,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  M.  Vandervelde  is  but  little  pre- 
occupied with  the  amelioration  of  the  lot  of  the 
existing  rural  classes,  and  that  he  is  so  easily 
reconciled  to  that  exodus  whose  disastrous 
effects,  from  an  agricultural  point  of  view,  he 
analyses  so  carefully  in  the  earlier  chapters  of 
his  book  He  regards  it  simply  as  something 
decreed  by  Fate,  inevitable  and  irreparable ;  he 
does  not  believe  in  the  possibility  of  bringing 
the  workers  back  to  the  land.  But  as  he  can 

170 


Artisans  and  Peasants 


hardly  end  with  a  mere  negation  after  painting 
so  convincing  and  distressing  a  picture,  he  finds 
a  via  media,  and  proposes  simply  to  make  semi- 
agriculturists  out  of  artisans,  contriving  for  them 
the  benefits  of  a  country  existence  by  way  of 
counteracting  the  hardships  of  life  in  the  cities. 

To  this  end  he  points  out  as  a  first  method 
that  which  exists  already  in  Belgium  and  which 
he  would  like  to  see  adopted  elsewhere ;  this 
consists  in  transporting  the  home  of  the  work- 
men out  of  the  slums  into  the  rural  suburbs  and 
even  into  the  open  country.  In  this  way  the 
father  of  the  family  can  earn  his  living  in  the 
city,  while  his  wife  keeps  house  in  the  country 
and  cultivates,  with  the  help  of  their  children, 
the  bit  of  land  which  provides  cheaply  for  some 
part  of  their  needs. 

In  Belgium  this  system  is  carried  out  on  a 
large  scale,  and  no  one  is  better  placed  than 
M.  Vendervelde  for  observing  its  results.  It  is 
made  practicable  by  the  co-operation  of  the 
railway  companies,  who  run  workmen's  trains 
at  extremely  reduced  rates.  The  number  of 
Belgium  workmen  who  live  under  these  con- 
ditions is  estimated  at  100,000. 

M.  Vandervelde,  however,  does  not  disguise 
the  fact  that  this  system  has  its  drawbacks ;  he 
draws  a  saddening  picture  of  the  workman, 

171 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


getting  up  an  hour,  or  even  two  hours,  before 
the  opening  of  the  factory,  hurrying  to  catch 
his  train,  and  then  returning  home,  utterly 
exhausted,  at  ten  o'clock  at  night.  It  is  hard 
to  see  what  good  he  gets  out  of  the  arrangement, 
however  beneficial  it  may  be  to  his  family.  The 
amount  of  fresh  air  he  enjoys  between  ten  at 
night  and  five  in  the  morning  can  scarcely  com- 
pensate him  for  the  taxation  on  his  energies 
that  is  involved  in  the  journey  to  and  fro. 


II 

M.  Vandervelde  himself,  recognizing  that  this 
is  the  weak  point  of  the  system,  proceeds  to 
put  forward  a  plan  which  is  infinitely  more 
practical,  and  which  he  himself  regards  as  the 
dernier  mot  of  progress :  instead  of  transporting 
the  artisan  into  the  country,  he  proposes  to 
transplant  the  factory  itself.  This,  in  truth, 
would  be  an  ideal  state  of  affairs,  if  it  could 
be  effected  by  the  waving  of  a  wand.  To 
support  his  contention,  M.  Vandervelde  records 
with  satisfaction  that  this  movement  has  for 
some  time  past  been  in  evolution  for  reasons 
which  he  deplores,  but  with  happy  consequences 
which  he  welcomes. 

172 


Artisans  and  Peasants 


He  notes  that  many  manufacturers  remove 
their  works  into  the  country  in  order  to  make 
a  saving  in  wages,  and  to  remove  their  men 
from  the  contagious  influence  of  revolutionary 
societies.  It's  an  ill  wind  that  blows  nobody 
good,  he  reflects  philosophically.  At  least  the 
workmen  are  in  this  way  better  housed,  have 
less  expenses,  they  breathe  fresh  air,  and  are 
able  to  go  in  for  a  little  gardening.  This  is 
the  true  solution,  he  concludes,  the  only  possible 
solution,  of  the  problem.  Thus  are  combined 
the  advantages  of  the  agriculturist's  healthy 
surroundings  and  the  artisan's  higher  pay. 

This  combination  is,  in  truth,  a  very  happy 
one,  and  we  unite  with  M.  Vandervelde  in 
recommending  it  most  strongly  —  we  wish 
cordially  to  see  factories  thus  transplanted,  and 
the  workers  exchanging  joyfully  the  ugly  amuse- 
ments of  their  city  life  for  the  wholesome 
atmosphere  of  the  country. 

In  England,  this  system  has  been  applied 
in  a  way  that  approaches  to  perfection.  Starting 
from  the  idea  that  our  existing  towns  have  been 
built  haphazard  fashion,  without  a  plan,  without 
proper  provision  for  hygienic  conditions,  the 
founders  of  these  rural  cities  sought  to  show 
that  nothing  could  be  simpler  than  to  reconcile 
the  well-being  of  the  workmen  with  the  needs 

173 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


of  the  business  and  the  economizing  of  expense. 
The  project  thus  stated  seems  so  simple, 
ingenuous  almost,  that  it  brings  a  cynical  smile 
to  the  lips. 

In  truth,  it  is  easier  said  than  done.  All  our 
cities,  even  the  largest,  were  at  one  time  in  the 
country.  Paris  itself  for  many  centuries  was 
nothing  but  a  vast  park — almost  a  forest.  It  is 
the  force  of  things  that  has  prevailed  gradually 
to  transform  it  into  the  serried  mass  of  human 
habitations  now  familiar  to  us.  It  is  regrettable, 
no  doubt,  from  a  hygienic  standpoint,  but  how 
are  such  things  to  be  prevented  ? 

Nothing  easier,  exclaim  our  generous  re- 
formers, eager  to  remould  the  world  anew  into 
its  original  shape.  Let  us  leave  existing  cities 
as  they  are,  as  it  is  unfortunately  too  late  to  set 
them  right ;  but  let  us  start  afresh  now,  profiting 
by  experience,  and  prevent  mankind  from  falling 
back  into  the  old  disastrous  ruts.  Let  us  build 
new  cities  on  open  spaces,  upon  plans  dictated 
by  hygiene,  brotherly  love,  and  common  sense, 
making  in  advance  such  provisions  as  will 
prevent  our  work  from  being  injuriously  affected 
by  any  whims  of  the  inhabitants ;  let  us  contrive 
an  insuperable  barrier  to  this  by  so  arranging 
our  plan  as  to  leave  a  certain  amount  of  un- 
occupied ground,  to  be  touched  by  nobody, 


Artisans  and  Peasants 


round  all  the  houses  and  churches  and  work- 
shops. And  let  us  so  enrich  the  whole  with 
flowers  and  foliage  as  to  justify  the  use  of  the 
term  "  Garden  City." 

These  garden  cities  are  to-day  a  reality.  In 
the  face  of  several  thriving  specimens  of  them, 
the  system  can  no  longer  be  regarded  as 
Utopian.  It  is  only  natural  that  the  idea  should 
have  its  birth  in  England,  where  it  comes  to 
fruit  under  the  most  favourable  conditions — in 
that  land  of  wide  acres  and  enterprising  spirits, 
as  well  as  of  large  fortunes  capable  of  enjoying 
the  luxury  of  embarking  upon  big  schemes. 


Ill 

It  would  seem  impossible  to  find  a  more 
complete  and  perfect  organization  of  a  manu- 
facturing business  combined  with  country  life 
than  those  which  have  recently  come  into  being, 
and  are  now  in  full  operation  at  Port  Sunlight 
and  Bournville.  These  two  garden  cities  are 
the  creation  of  two  great  English  manufacturers, 
as  notable  for  their  practical  minds  as  for  their 
ardent  philanthropy. 

The  first,  Mr.  Lever,  is  the  great  soap 
manufacturer,  who,  after  making  a  colossal 

175 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


fortune,  took  it  into  his  head  one  day  to 
transplant  his  factories  right  into  the  country, 
to  a  site  admirably  chosen,  constructing  hard  by 
them  a  model  village,  with  spacious  avenues  and 
pretty  cottages,  comfortable  as  well  as  artistic — 
the  whole  enriched  by  trees  and  meadows. 
These  habitations,  at  the  most  modest  cost, 
he  placed  at  the  disposal  of  his  employees. 

It  was  another  great  manufacturer,  Mr. 
Cadbury,  who  constructed  the  similar  village 
of  Bournville.  French  working-men  who  read 
the  account  given  of  these  two  Edens  by  M. 
Benoit  Levy  in  his  recent  book,  will  yearn  for 
fresh  air  and  be  unwilling  any  longer  to  shut 
themselves  up  in  the  squalid  holes  in  which 
they  are  confined  in  the  towns. 

Unfortunately,  many  are  called  but  few  are 
chosen,  and  these  two  splendid  model  cities 
are  still  exceptions  even  in  England.  Such 
creations  are  not  possible  for  every  one;  they 
are  practicable  only  in  the  case  of  very  pro- 
sperous industries,  which  can  afford  to  sink 
large  sums  and  to  pay  high  wages.  The  rents 
at  Port  Sunlight  and  Bournville  are  much 
higher  than  could  be  paid  by  the  bulk  of 
workers  in  other  businesses. 

We  admit  most  willingly  that  these  generous 
and  disinterested  experiments  are  worthy  of  all 

176 


Artisans  and  Peasants 


praise,  and  we  should  never  think  of  throwing 
cold  water  on  them  ;  they  represent  a  movement 
which  deserves  careful  attention  and  which  will 
make  its  way.*  It  is  being  directed  by  men  of 
energy  and  conviction — men  who  are  not  to  be 
frightened  by  obstacles  and  who  are  impelled  by 
the  faith  that  moves  mountains.  No  one  can  say 
where  they  will  stop. 

But  however  far  they  may  go,  they  must 
stop  sooner  or  later.  In  the  very  nature  of 
things,  garden  cities  will  always  be  something 
exceptional  and  isolated,  available  only  for  a 
very  small  section  of  mankind.  Happy  they 
who  succeed  in  finding  their  way  into  them; 
but  how  many  will  there  be  in  all  ?  It  is  not  to 
be  imagined  that  all  our  great  manufactories  are 
going  to  follow  suit.  Nor  is  it  to  be  supposed 
even  that  all  those  which  do  so  will  reap  success 
as  a  consequence  of  the  move.  The  industrial 
struggle  of  to-day  is  no  idyll,  and  to  win  one's 
way  in  it,  it  is  often  necessary  to  make  the  best 
of  very  unpleasant  and  uninviting  surroundings. 

•  A  great  French  manufacturer,  M.  Schneider  of  Creusot, 
is  about,  it  seems,  to  attempt  something  of  the  same  kind. 
There  are  probably  not  two  French  firms  that  could  venture 
on  such  a  project  as  he  contemplates:  the  creation  of  a 
garden  city  capable  of  holding  6000  workers  at  Champagne- 
sur-Seine,  side  by  side  with  electricity  works. 

177  N 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


IV 

But  we  have  allowed  M.  Vandervelde  to 
beguile  us  away  too  far  from  our  subject.  The 
question  is  not  how  to  retain  the  workers  in  the 
factories,  but  how  to  lead  back  to  the  land  those 
surplus  hands  that  can  find  no  employment  in 
the  cities. 

Far  from  solving  this  problem,  M.  Vander- 
velde does  but  intensify  it  and  make  it  more 
complex,  for  the  advantages  he  proposes  to 
extend  to  the  artisans  offer  an  additional 
temptation  to  lure  away  agricultural  labourers 
from  the  soil. 

He  has  left  entirely  on  one  side  the  principal 
factor  in  the  question,  and  has  only  devoted  his 
mind  to  the  condition  of  the  workman's  home. 
He  has  not  asked  himself  the  preliminary 
question  as  to  what  will  be  the  effects  upon  the 
workman  himself  of  the  scientific  and  economic 
revolution  which  is  tending  every  day  to 
decrease  the  numbers  of  hands  employed  in 
manufacturing.  What  is  to  be  done  with  those 
who  lose  their  occupation  ?  Is  it  wise,  is  it 
democratic  to  ignore  this  grim  eventuality  and 
to  make  no  kind  of  provision  for  it  ? 

So  much  said  by  way  of  criticism,  we  must 
178 


Artisans  and  Peasants 


nevertheless  recognize  that  we  can  turn  M. 
Vandervelde's  second  solution  to  good  account 
by  extending  and  modifying  it,  and  can  make  of 
it  an  evolutionary  stage  between  manufacturing 
and  agriculture  which  is  worth  serious  con- 
sideration, and  which  would  solve  our  problem 
at  least  in  some  degree.  From  semi-agri- 
culturist our  artisan  should  be  able  to  become, 
when  the  time  arrives,  an  agriculturist  pure  and 
simple.  While  the  system  will  tend  to  modify 
the  hardships  of  unemployment  in  the  cities  at 
moments  when,  owing  to  over-production,  the 
labour-market  is  slack,  there  are  very  few 
branches  of  industry  which  have  not  sometimes 
their  dead  season,  and  if  at  these  times  they 
keep  all  hands  at  work,  it  means  that  they 
accumulate  stock  to  such  a  degree  that  pro- 
longed periods  of  crisis  ensue. 

It  is  on  this  account  that  the  law  permits 
certain  industries,  specially  dependent  upon  the 
seasons,  to  increase  their  working-hours  when 
the  demand  for  their  goods  is  greatest,  thus 
enabling  them  to  decrease  their  working-hours 
at  other  times.  In  the  case  of  these  industries, 
and  of  many  others  to  which  the  law  does  not 
extend  the  same  privileges,  a  cessation  of  work 
for  one  day  in  the  week  is  sometimes  a  real 
necessity  as  a  measure  of  precaution.  But  how 

179 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


is  the  interest  of  the  workman  to  be  reconciled 
with  that  of  the  work,  how  atone  to  him  for 
docking  him  of  a  day's  wages  ?  Here  is  where 
M.  Vandervelde's  scheme  comes  in  so  well. 
Our  artisan  can  put  in  the  extra  time  working 
on  his  land.  Presently  he  may  find  that  the 
hours  thus  spent  are  more  profitable  than  they 
would  have  been  at  the  manufactory.  In  this 
way  stoppages  of  work  might  become  a  regular 
thing  under  quite  satisfactory  conditions,  and 
prove  a  veritable  safety-valve  to  the  manu- 
facturing industry. 

It  may  be  objected  that  the  system  will  not 
work  because  those  manufacturers  who  cannot 
give  their  men  its  benefits  will  probably  continue 
to  work  full  time,  while  the  semi-agriculturists 
are  spending  the  slack  time  in  the  country,  and 
the  latter  would  in  this  way  be  at  a  disadvantage. 

This  would  be  so,  if  there  were  no  means  of 
restoring  the  equilibrium,  but  the  means  are  at 
hand  and  well  known.  They  consist  of  a  method 
of  redemption  arranged  between  establishments 
which  cannot  afford  to  stop  work,  and  those 
which  are  obliged  to  do  so.  In  most  cases  the 
stoppage  is  foreseen  and  provided  for  satis- 
factorily in  this  way. 

This  semi-industrial,  semi-agricultural  evolu- 
tion will  come  about  gradually  as  soon  as  our 

1 80 


Artisans  and  Peasants 


French  industries  shall  have  been  steered  in  the 
right  direction,  and  as  soon  as  our  working- 
men  recognize  the  need  of  it.  They  will  regain 
their  lost  knowledge  of  agricultural  lore  simply 
by  force  of  working  in  their  own  fields,  and  the 
love  of  the  land  will  be  reborn  again  in  their 
hearts.  This,  together  with  the  strong  senti- 
ment of  personal  ownership,  will  suffice  to 
recreate  the  old  rural  spirit,  and  in  time  to  give 
it  predominance  over  the  call  of  the  city. 


THE   PRESENT  CONDITION  OF 
AGRICULTURE 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  PRESENT  CONDITION  OF  AGRICULTURE 

I 

A/T  VANDERVELDE  pulls  us  up  with  another 
*y*-  •  objection  which  looks  formidable  at  first 
sight — the  diminution  of  agricultural  labour  due 
to  the  introduction  of  machinery  and  the  trans- 
formation of  methods  of  culture.  In  agriculture, 
as  in  manufacture,  he  tells  us,  machinery  is 
taking  the  place  of  man  in  an  increasing  degree. 
Every  day  marks  some  new  progress  in 
mechanism  and  a  corresponding  deduction  from 
the  demand  for  human  hands;  the  methods  of 
culture  most  approved  are  those  which  demand 
least  manual  labour.  It  is  in  these  circum- 
stances, he  exclaims,  that  you  would  try  to  win 
back  to  the  land  the  hapless  artisans  of  the 
town! 

The  objection  is  not  without  weight,  but  it 
can  be  met  easily  enough.  And  first  of  all, 
there  is  a  very  great  difference  between  the  uses 
made  of  machinery  in  manufactures  and  in 

185 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


agriculture.  In  manufactures  the  machine  is 
everything — it  replaces  manual  labour  alto- 
gether. In  agriculture,  the  part  played  by  the 
machine,  even  the  most  highly  perfected,  is  very 
different.  It  will  be  some  time  before  we  see 
machines  capable  of  growing  corn  and  potatoes, 
beetroot  and  grapes !  Nature  is  exacting,  and 
will  always  refuse  to  yield  her  treasures  to  man 
until  he  has  expended  efforts  of  brain  and 
muscle  for  which  no  substitute  can  be  found. 
This  truth  has  been  well  expressed  by  M. 
Cheysson  in  the  little  book  to  which  I  have 
referred  already.  "The  peasant,"  he  says,  "is 
at  the  mercy  of  the  cycle  of  the  seasons.  He 
cannot  improvise  an  oak,  or  a  vine,  or  even 
a  rose ;  and,  forced  alternately,  like  Maitre 
Jacques,  to  harrow  and  sow  and  reap,  he  is 
immune  from  the  sub-division  of  labour  which 
has  transformed  our  manufacturing  industries. 
...  It  is  thus  that  the  earth  defends  its  toilers 
against  the  dangers  of  over-crowding,  which  is 
one  of  the  most  baneful  characteristics  of  our 
great  cities." 

Let  us  deal  now  with  the  other  objection, 
that  the  methods  of  culture  now  most  in  vogue 
are  those  which  require  least  manual  labour. 
It  is  surprising  that  M.  Vandervelde  himself 
has  not  perceived  that  his  reasoning  rests  upon 

1 86 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

a  begging  of  the  whole  question  ;  if  our  agricul- 
turists have  forsaken  their  old  methods  of 
culture,  this  is  due  precisely  to  the  rural  exodus. 
They  have  forsaken  their  old  methods  regret- 
fully, and  would  be  only  too  pleased  to  return  to 
their  time-honoured  system  of  rotations  of  crops, 
if  they  could  secure  sufficient  labourers  for  the 
purpose. 

During  the  agricultural  crisis  every  one  went 
in  for  meadow-lands  and  the  rearing  of  cattle, 
but  many  agriculturists  question  now  whether 
we  did  not  go  too  far  in  this  direction.  Already 
we  are  forced  to  try  to  find  markets  for  our 
best  cattle  abroad.  This  will  help  the  foreigner 
to  improve  his  stock,  thus  eventually  enabling 
our  customers  to  be  independent  of  us.  When 
that  day  comes,  we  shall  be  glad  enough  to  fall 
back  upon  our  former  products.  The  trade  in 
cereals,  in  which  we  excel,  is  not  languishing 
now,  to  judge  by  what  is  happening  at  this 
moment  in  the  United  States,  which  were 
obliged  to  import  foreign  corn  last  year  for  their 
enormous  population. 

It  is  to  be  hoped,  moreover,  that  our  agricul- 
ture would  develop  in  accordance  with  the  needs 
of  the  market,  which  are  infinitely  elastic.  Here, 
again,  we  come  upon  a  fundamental  difference 
between  agriculture  and  manufacture.  As  we 

187 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


have  already  remarked,  when  we  are  sufficiently 
supplied  with  clothes  and  furniture,  we  stop 
buying,  and  are  not  to  be  tempted  even  by  low 
prices.  Therefore  it  is  folly  to  say  to  our 
manufacturers  :  "  Keep  on  producing — no  need 
to  trouble  about  anything,"  instead  of  saying, 
"  Be  careful  only  to  produce  in  accordance  with 
the  needs  of  the  market.  Otherwise  you  will  be 
ruined." 

It  is  quite  different  with  our  food  supplies; 
there  is  no  doubt  that  there  is  a  far  larger 
demand  for  them  all  over  the  world.  If  the 
artisan  and  even  the  agricultural  labourer  are 
better  clothed  and  housed  than  they  used  to  be, 
they  are  far  from  being  so  well  fed.  In  the 
great  cities,  [in  which  workmen  require  really 
good  food  to  enable  them  to  cope  with  the 
deleterious  influences  of  their  surroundings, 
the  nourishment  they  have  to  make  shift  with 
is  often  very  inadequate.  The  same  can  be 
said  of  certain  country  districts  where  poverty 
is  endemic.  What  existence  could  be  more 
miserable  than  that  of  the  great  families  of 
Breton  peasants  and  fisherfolk  so  often  con- 
demned to  a  state  bordering  on  famine  ? 

It  should  be  accounted  a  duty  to  do  for  the 
food  of  the  masses  what  has  already  been  done 
for  their  clothing  and  their  housing ;  hence  the 

188 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

necessity  of  fostering  the  great  revival  of 
agriculture,  especially  in  the  direction  of  small 
farms  which  also  provide  most  scope  for  manual 
labour.  When  our  workers,  alike  in  town  and 
country,  have  begun  to  eat  more  bread,  and  meat, 
and  vegetables,  and  cheese,  and  fruit,  the  land 
will  have  to  be  cultivated  more  and  more;  no 
one  can  form  any  idea  of  the  enormous  quantity 
of  products  that  can  be  absorbed  by  mankind. 


II 

Thus  it  is  we  read  the  future  of  industrious 
humanity;  for  the  question  which  calls  for 
consideration  in  France,  calls  for  consideration 
a  little  everywhere,  and  everywhere  the  same 
conclusions  are  being  arrived  at,  and  the  same 
methods  put  into  practice. 

This  revival  of  agriculture  is  not  to  be 
accounted  for  entirely  by  economic  reasons, 
by  the  necessity  for  opening  out  new  channels 
of  labour  for  the  working-classes;  it  is  due 
partly  to  a  cause  more  profound,  to  the  instinct 
of  self-preservation  which  guides  nations  as 
well  as  individuals,  and  which  gives  them  warn- 
ing of  impending  dangers.  Now,  is  there  any 
greater  danger  for  a  country  than  for  it  to  be 

189 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


in  the  power  of  the  foreigner,  by  being  depen- 
dent upon  the  foreigner  for  its  food  supply? 
That  is  England's  position  now,  and  it  is  not 
an  enviable  one.  It  is  a  subject  of  constant 
and  justifiable  anxiety  for  that  great  country, 
so  powerful  otherwise;  if  England  were  ever 
engaged  in  a  great  war,  any  slight  mishap,  any 
surprise  attack  upon  the  seas,  might  cut  off  her 
supplies  and  starve  her  immense  population. 
Without  imagining  the  worst,  it  is  at  least 
certain  that  on  the  day  England  went  to  war, 
the  price  of  provisions  in  England  would  rise 
to  such  an  extent  as  would  cause  the  Govern- 
ment internal  embarrassment* 

There  is  a  terrible  unfathomed  danger  ahead 
of  her,   and  it  is  very  natural  that  the  other 


*  The  situation  in  England  has  been  getting  steadily  worse 
in  this  respect  for  the  last  fifty  years.  The  importation  of 
cereals,  which  amounted  to  only  83,000,000  cwt.  in  1871,  had 
reached  196,000,000  in  1901 ;  corn  alone  had  risen  to  69,000,000 
cwt.  from  39,000,000.  The  horned  cattle  imported  in  1871 
amounted  to  248,000  head;  in  1902  the  figure  had  swollen  to 
495,000.  The  meat  imports  shows  a  far  more  remarkable 
increase,  rising  from  2j  to  20  million  cwt.  within  the  same 
period.  Thus  the  abandonment  of  agriculture  forces  England, 
who  twenty  years  ago  was  already  spending  ,£146,000,000  upon 
her  food  supply,  to  spend  ^214,000,000  to-day.  Compare  this 
state  of  affairs  with  that  of  France,  who,  to-day,  pays  nothing 
to  the  foreigner  for  provisions,  and  who  in  addition  finds  a 
market  abroad  for  the  surplus  of  her  own  food  stuffs, 

IQO 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

European    powers  should  be  anxious  that  no 
similar  peril  should  threaten  them. 

For  this  reason  it  is  that  they  are  turning 
their  attention  towards  agriculture,  and  en- 
couraging it  with  subventions  and  all  kinds  of 
help.  It  has  come  to  seem  in  their  eyes  an 
essential  element  of  national  defence,  indis- 
pensable for  the  nourishment  of  the  great 
isolated  camp  into  which  every  nation  is  trans- 
formed in  time  of  war.  They  remember,  too, 
that  the  rural  classes  provide  them  with  the  best 
stuff  for  their  armies,  the  sturdiest  and  steadiest, 
and  that  when  this  great  reservoir  of  strength 
runs  dry,  the  military  status  of  the  nation  sinks 
accordingly. 

These  ideas  are  now  beginning  to  make  way 
in  England  also.  The  great  economic  revolution 
now  being  advocated  by  Mr.  Chamberlain,  with 
such  power  and  such  tenacity,  is  nothing  but  a 
movement  back  to  the  land— back  to  that  agri- 
culture which  England  has  neglected  so  much  for 
half  a  century.  Of  course,  the  great  reformer 
does  not  proclaim  this  truth  dogmatically,  for  fear 
of  alarming  the  manufacturers  and  the  orthodox 
economists ;  he  does  not  propose  to  revive  and 
reinstate  English  agriculture  as  it  once  was. 
He  feels,  doubtless,  that  this  task  would  be  too 
difficult— that  it  is  now  too  late  to  attempt  it. 

191 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


He  has  conceived  another  idea—that  of 
dividing  up  the  great  British  Empire  into  two 
sections,  devoted  almost  exclusively,  the  one  to 
agriculture,  the  other  to  the  manufacturing 
industries.  With  this  as  his  starting-point,  he 
speaks  as  follows  to  the  great  agricultural 
colonies,  Canada,  Australia,  and  the  African 
possessions.  "  Take  warning,"  he  says  to  them, 
"  from  the  lessons  that  have  cost  us  so  dear,  and 
instead  of  applying  your  energies  to  the  manu- 
facturing industries  which  are  now  plethoric, 
devote  them  altogether  to  agriculture.  Here 
you  will  have  a  fertile  field  all  to  yourselves, 
which  will  ensure  you  wealth  and  security.  If 
you  will  do  this,  I  promise  you  for  your  natural 
products  the  most  magnificent  market  in  the 
world — the  British  market,  with  its  immense 
working-class  population,  representing  an  inex- 
haustible reservoir  of  consumers.  In  return  for 
the  provisions  we  shall  buy  from  you,  we  shall 
send  you  our  manufactures;  the  United  King- 
dom will  be  the  workshop,  you  will  be  the 
harvest-field,  the  orchard ;  the  balance  will  thus 
be  restored  between  our  supply  and  demand, 
and  the  British  Empire  will  constitute  a  perfect 
model  of  the  true  division  of  labour  and  human 
activities." 

This  grandiose  project  is,  in  truth,  far  from 
192 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

being  perfect,  and  it  will  in  its  application  knock 
up  against  innumerable  difficulties,*  but  one 
cannot  deny  the  rigour  of  its  logic  or  the  justice 
of  the  standpoint  on  which  it  rests.  Mr. 
Chamberlain's  chief  merit  will  lie  in  his  having 
recognized  from  afar  the  rocks  upon  which  the 
English  ship  of  state  may  founder,  and  in  his 
having  said  out  loud  what  others  were  content 
to  think.  He  entertains  no  illusions  as  to  what 
used  to  be  proudly  designated  the  industrial 
supremacy  of  England. 

That  which  gives  force  to  Mr.  Chamberlain's 
movement  is  the  promise  he  holds  out  of 
an  enlarged  British  market  in  substitution  for 
the  foreign  markets  which  British  commerce  has 
been  losing.  What  a  sense  of  satisfaction  the 

*  The  weak  point  in  the  system  is  easily  discerned.  It  is 
based  upon  an  illusion,  the  belief,  that  is,  that  the  great  British 
colonies — Canada,  for  instance — will  come  to  a  stop  in  their 
economic  development  and  give  up  their  industries,  resigning 
themselves  to  dependence  upon  the  mother-country  for  manu- 
factured goods.  It  is  very  probable  that  they  will  do  just  the 
opposite,  and,  walled  in  behind  their  protective  tariffs,  develop 
their  national  industries  better  than  ever.  There  are  signs  of 
this  already.  A  group  of  Canadian  manufacturers  have  just 
formed  themselves  into  a  syndicate  for  establishing  a  tinware 
manufactory,  and,  in  order  to  compete  successfully  with  Wales, 
which  hitherto  has  supplied  Canada  with  tinware,  they  have 
petitioned  their  Government  for  a  protective  duty,  and  have 
been  promised  it.  This  will  administer  a  mortal  blow  to  the 
tinware  industry  in  Wales. 

193  o 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


Britisher  would  have  in  boasting,  "  Hence- 
forward, we  also  are  self-sufficing,  and  can  do 
without  any  one  else.  We  have  an  empire  vast 
enough  to  supply  the  customers  we  need,  and 
our  workmen  need  have  no  fear  in  future  of 
being  unemployed.  There  are  more  than  enough 
English  consumers  in  the  world  to  absorb  all  our 
national  output" 

The  English  agriculturists,  for  their  part,  so 
long  neglected  and  despised,  have  begun  to  hope 
that  they  also  will  share  in  the  great  return  to 
agricultural  production,  and  that,  thanks  to 
better  prices,  they  will  be  able  to  resume 
branches  of  cultivation  which  they  have  had  to 
forsake ;  they  are  saying  to  themselves  that  the 
manual  labour  they  require  may  now  be  forth- 
coming, and  that  workmen  will  be  only  too  glad 
to  seek  in  the  country  an  existence  less  wretched 
than  has  been  their  lot  in  the  towns. 

If  we  turn  our  eyes  now  towards  Germany, 
we  shall  see  that  here,  also,  despite  the  in- 
dustrial fever  which  she  has  been  going  through 
during  the  last  twenty  years,  there  is  a  strong 
movement  in  progress  towards  the  land.  There 
are  superficial  observers  who  make  light  of  the 
movement,  and  declare  that  it  is  the  outcome 
merely  of  a  coalition  of  great  landlords  anxious 
to  raise  the  value  of  their  estates.  But  if  that 

194 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

were  so,  the  German  agrarian  league  would  not 
be  so  formidable,  and  we  should  be  at  a  loss  to 
understand  its  enormous  influence  over  public 
opinion  and  with  the  authorities.  This  influence 
is  to  be  explained  only  by  the  existence  of  a 
subterranean  current  carrying  the  idea  into  the 
lowest  strata  of  the  population.  The  Germans 
are  a  practical  race,  like  the  English,  and  the 
immense  industrial  triumphs  they  have  achieved 
during  the  last  thirty  years  have  not  turned 
their  heads  to  such  a  degree  as  to  have  made 
them  lose  touch  with  reality.  They  have  been 
warned  by  unmistakable  symptoms  that  they 
have  reached  the  zenith  of  their  industrial 
prosperity,  as  Great  Britain  reached  hers  long 
ago,  and  they  are  beginning  to  have  a  care  for 
the  future. 

After  an  era  of  unequalled  prosperity,  which 
lasted  until  1901,  they  found  themselves  thrown 
by  the  excess  of  their  output  into  a  crisis  which 
very  nearly  ended  in  a  veritable  catastrophe. 
They  recovered  from  this  by  reason  of  their 
energy  and  discipline,  and  because  the  industries 
which  were  in  danger  did  not  try  to  get  the 
better  of  each  other,  as  happens  at  such  times 
in  other  countries;  on  the  contrary,  they  stood 
by  each  other,  and  came  to  mutual  understand- 
ings, with  a  view  to  saving  the  situation  and  to 

195 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


finding    outlets    for  their    surplus    production 
abroad. 

The  immediate  peril  has  passed,  but  there 
is  a  general  impression  that  it  may  recur,  and 
that,  sooner  or  later,  Germany  may  find  herself 
in  the  same  situation  as  Great  Britain — that 
she  is  destined  to  see  her  foreign  markets 
narrowed,  whilst  her  production  continues  to 
grow ;  and  she  cannot,  like  Great  Britain,  find 
fresh  markets  in  her  colonies,  for  her  policy 
has3  been  to  have  as  few  as  possible,  and  to 
content  herself  with  exploiting  those  of  other 
nations. 

What,  then,  will  she  do  with  her  enormous 
industrial  population?  There  is  always  the 
resource  of  emigration,  and  already  there  is 
an  unceasing  stream  of  emigrants  from  Germany 
which  serve  as  a  safety-valve.  But  emigration 
has  its  undesirable  side  as  a  remedy,  and  all 
the  great  European  nations,  which  hitherto 
have  regarded  it  with  so  much  approval,  should 
begin  soon  to  realize  that  it  is  all  to  the  advan- 
tage of  the  country  into  which  it  flows.  It  is 
the  emigrants  from  Great  Britain,  and  Germany, 
and  Italy,  who  have  made  the  United  States, 
as  they  are  now  making  Brazil,  and  Mexico, 
and  the  Argentine  Republic.  It  is  they  who 
have  enabled  the  budding  industries  of  those 

196 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

lands  to  enter  into  competition  with  the  indus- 
tries of  the  countries  they  quitted.  So  it  must 
always  be. 

The  great  tide  of  emigration,  however,  to- 
wards the  New  World  is  beginning  to  weaken, 
and  these  regions  will  not  suffice  permanently 
for  the  surplus  populations  of  Europe,*  for 
the  simple  reason  that  there  are  limits  to  space 
and  the  best  places  are  getting  filled.  From 
the  force  of  circumstances,  therefore,  Germany 
is  being  impelled  into  this  return  to  agriculture. 
The  German  Government,  which  has  done  so 
much  for  manufacturers,  realizes  that  it  has 
gone  too  far  in  this  direction,  and  must  "  back  " 
a  little.  The  new  treaties  of  commerce  which 
it  has  just  negociated  with  the  principal  Euro- 
pean nations,  are  a  triumph  for  agriculture  and 
for  the  agrarian  party;  their  distinguishing 
mark  is  the  increase  in  the  import  duty  upon 
corn,  and  upon  the  chief  agricultural  products. 

In  the  first  discussions  of  this  matter  in  the 
Reichstag,  the  German  Government  defined  its 
position  quite  distinctly,  and  announced  that  it 

*  The  Austrian  Consul- General  in  New  York  records  that, 
in  spite  of  the  great  reduction  in  the  rates  of  passage,  the 
number  of  European  immigrants  into  the  States  sank  from 
568,000  in  1903,  between  April  i  and  July  29,  to  427,000  in  1904 
within  the  same  period  ;  while  the  number  of  European  emi- 
grants returning  home  from  America  increases  every  year. 

197 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


deliberately  proposed  to  favour  agriculture. 
The  Minister  of  Finance,  Baron  de  Richthoffer, 
recalled  to  the  House  the  fact  that  the  Chambers 
of  Agriculture  had  come  unanimously  to  the 
conclusion  that  agriculture  must  be  protected  by 
import  duties  in  the  interest  of  the  small  farmers. 
He  pointed  out  that  while  trade  and  industry 
had  developed  of  recent  years,  the  number  of 
agricultural  labourers  had  decreased  by  400,000 
in  a  single  decade.  The  object,  then,  of  the 
new  custom-house  policy  of  Germany,  is  simply 
the  furtherance  of  the  movement  back  to  the 
land. 

What  we  have  said  of  Germany  may  be 
said  also  of  Italy.  Italy  has  achieved  a  won- 
derful industrial  development  during  the  last 
few  years,  but  she  is  not  blind  to  the  future, 
and  she  recognizes  the  difficulty  she  will  have 
presently  in  finding  customers  for  her  output, 
if  she  does  not  put  a  curb  on  production. 
Accordingly,  she  has  been  devoting  herself 
whole-heartedly  to  the  development  of  her 
agriculture.  She  is  seeking  to  become  the 
garden  of  Europe,  and  no  nation  has  organized 
its  exports  of  agricultural  produce  with  so  much 
care  and  acumen.  In  this  respect  we  should 
do  well  to  take  her  for  our  model* 

*  The  Italian  Office  of  Statistics  has  published  a  study  of 
198 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

It  is  due  to  Italian  statesmen,  most  of  whom 
are  excellent  men  of  business,  to  record  that 
they  never  lose  sight  of  the  needs  of  rural  Italy, 
and  that  they  are  making  continuous  efforts  to 
make  the  most  of  it.  Their  efforts  are  power- 
fully seconded  by  King  Victor  Emanuel  III.,  who 
has  shown  himself  from  the  first  a  fervent 
believer  in  agriculture.  He  has  recently  given 
very  striking  proof  of  his  sentiments  by  initi- 
ating a  very  excellent  measure— the  creation  of 
an  international  institute  for  the  study  of  matters 
of  interest  to  agriculturists.  It  is  too  soon  to 
predict  what  will  be  the  outcome  of  this  new 
institution,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  its 
extreme  value  to  agriculturists.  It  will  be  a 
meeting-place  for  the  agrarian  parties  of  all 
nations,  and  in  particular  for  that  of  Italy, 
which  counts  among  its  numbers  so  many  men 
of  great  worth. 

The  lack  of  equilibrium  between  manufac- 
tures and  agriculture  is  an  evil,  it  should  be 
noted,  peculiar  so  far  to  Europe.  The  New 
World  does  not  yet  suffer  from  this  malady, 

the  progress  of  agriculture  in  the  country  during  the  years 
1883-1903.  The  average  annual  output  of  large  produce 
(cereals,  wine,  potatoes,  wood,  cattle,  etc.)  during  these  twenty 
years  was  4,910,000,000  liras ;  while  fruit,  vegetables,  fowls, 
eggs,  and  flowers  amounted  to  150,000,000  more. 

199 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


and  if  it  takes  warning  from  our  example,  it 
may  escape  it  altogether.  Agriculture  is  still 
the  great  industry  of  Canada,  Mexico,  Brazil, 
and  the  Argentine  Republic — countries  com- 
prising immense  expanses  of  rich  land.  Their 
manufactures  have,  as  yet,  plenty  of  margin, 
and  are  not  in  danger  of  producing  more  than 
is  wanted. 

The  United  States,  at  first  sight,  seem  in 
even  greater  danger  than  the  European  nations, 
so  greatly  does  their  industrial  production 
exceed  their  own  demands,  and  they  do  things 
with  such  a  rush  that  it  seems  impossible  for 
them  to  pull  up  short.  But  if  we  look  a  little 
more  closely  into  their  condition,  we  are  soon 
reassured  as  far  as  they  are  concerned ;  they 
may  succeed  in  ruining  all  the  rest  of  the  world, 
they  can  never  ruin  themselves,  because  they 
can  always  fall  back  upon  agriculture,  which 
they  have  been  careful,  unlike  Great  Britain, 
not  to  sacrifice  to  manufactures.  They  have 
had  the  wisdom  to  keep  the  two  forms  of  in- 
dustry abreast  and  to  neglect  neither.  Hence 
theirs  is  now,  with  France  and  Russia,  one  of 
the  three  countries  capable  of  adapting  them- 
selves to  present  circumstances,  and  of  weather- 
ing the  economic  revolution  which  menaces  all 
the  others. 

200 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

This  extraordinary  energy  could  not  have 
been  better  guided  than  it  has  been.  Their 
greatest  efforts  have  been  to  turn  their  soil  to 
account  and  develop  their  agriculture,  in  the 
consciousness  that  therein  lay  the  inexhaustible 
source  of  their  wealth  and  the  solid  buttress 
of  their  well-being. 

Their  progress  was  so  extraordinarily  rapid 
that  it  really  seemed  as  though  they  would 
overwhelm  the  whole  world  with  their  produce, 
but  Europe  took  fright,  and  raised  a  custom- 
house barrier  which  served  to  stem  the  tide 
of  invasion. 

The  Americans  saw  the  situation  at  once, 
and  raised  no  objections.  Instead,  with  the 
rapidity  of  thought  and  deed  which  characterize 
them,  they  changed  their  weapon  and,  allowing 
their  agricultural  ambitions  to  lie  dormant  for 
a  while,  they  threw  themselves  into  the  manu- 
facturing industry.  We  have  already  told  how 
in  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  the  United 
States,  from  being  dependent  upon  Europe 
for  manufactured  goods,  first  became  self-suffic- 
ing in  this  field,  and  then  became  one  of  the 
most  powerful  and  formidable  exporters ;  its 
commercial  balance  being  actually  higher  than 
that  of  any  other  nation. 

At  the  present  moment  it  looks  as  though 
20 1 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


nothing  could  stop  their  progress.  They  are 
rushing  through  space  like  a  cannon-ball.  Their 
industrial  ambitions  are  beginning  to  arouse 
everywhere  the  same  kind  of  alarm  as  was 
evoked  formerly  by  their  agriculture,  and  there 
seems  little  doubt  that  an  era  of  difficulties  will 
begin  for  them. 

Their  ingenious  method  of  overcoming  the 
custom-house  barrier  raised  against  them  by 
protectionist  countries,  their  trust  system,  is 
beginning  to  fail  of  its  purpose;  Germany  has 
retaliated  with  cartels,  which  are  nothing  but 
anti-trusts;  Canada,  at  once  more  logical  and 
more  courageous,  has  opposed  them  with 
differential  duties  corresponding  to  the  advan- 
tages enjoyed  by  the  trusts,  and  it  is  to  be 
foreseen  that  the  other  countries  will  have 
recourse  to  similar  methods  in  self-protection. 
The  Yankees,  with  their  keen  scent,  have 
become  aware  of  the  storm  threatening  them 
from  the  European  side,  and  by  way  of  pre- 
paration for  it  have  descended  upon  Asia,  where 
they  have  already  taken  root,  and  where  they 
hope  to  find  an  immense  market  so  soon  as 
the  Panama  Canal  shall  have  made  communi- 
cation possible  with  all  parts  of  the  great 
Republic. 

But  here  they  are  going  to  knock  up  against 
202 


The  Present  Condition  of  Agriculture 

Great  Britain,  Germany,  and,  above  all,  Japan, 
whom  now  nothing  will  check  in  that  expansion 
which  the  United  States  themselves  viewed 
with  so  much  favour.  What  will  come  of  this 
conflict  of  insatiable  ambitions?  Shall  we  in 
the  midst  of  our  civilization  see  this  struggle 
for  commercial  supremacy  degenerate  into  a 
sanguinary  war  ?  Though  it  may  seem  unlikely, 
it  is  not  impossible. 

Meanwhile,  the  possibilities  of  agriculture 
in  the  States  are  infinite — we  are  only  at  the 
beginning  of  their  development.  Their  produc- 
tion of  corn,  for  instance,  concentrated  to-day 
in  the  north-west,  can  be  extended  without 
measure  towards  the  south-west,  the  States 
of  Arkansas,  Oklahama,  and  Texas,  where  there 
are  still  130  millions  of  acres  available  for 
cultivation.  There  is  Nebraska,  too,  which  is 
marvellously  fertile. 

The  day  approaches  when  the  United  States 
will  reap  the  recompense  of  the  efforts  and 
the  sacrifices  they  have  made  for  the  mainte- 
nance of  their  agricultural  strength.  They  will 
be  able  to  brave  the  tempest  which  threatens 
their  manufactures,  that  coalition  against  them 
of  all  the  other  nations.  They  have  but  to 
hark  back  to  agriculture— a  less  fruitful  industry 
but  more  safe  and  more  lasting.  They  can,  in 

203 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


consequence,  face  the  future  with  more  serenity 
than  any  other  country,  provided  only  they 
are  not  intoxicated  by  success  and  do  not  want 
to  dominate  the  world.  Imperialism  would 
be  just  as  dangerous  for  them  as  it  is  for 
Great  Britain,  or  the  Pan-Germanic  movement 
is  for  Germany. 


204 


THE    COLONIES. 
AGRARIAN    SOCIALISM 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  COLONIES.      AGRARIAN   SOCIALISM 
I 

A  FTER  the  United  States,  France  certainly 
•**•  takes  the  first  place  among  the  great 
industrial  nations  in  regard  to  her  economic 
resources  and  the  balance  struck  between  agri- 
culture and  manufacture.  Like  the  United 
States,  she  is  able,  whenever  she  likes,  when- 
ever she  feels  the  need,  to  foster  agriculture 
by  moderating  a  little  her  industrial  activity. 
She  has  at  hand  everything  she  can  need  for 
that — a  most  fertile  soil  and  a  climate  adaptable 
to  every  variety  of  growth ;  she  can  be  at  will 
a  field  or  a  garden;  she  can  transform  or 
multiply  all  her  agricultural  products  in  accord- 
ance with  the  demand  from  within  or  from 
without. 

At  first  sight  it  may  seem  that  she  is  at 
a  disadvantage  as  compared  with  the  United 
States  or  Canada,  in  that  her  soil  is  fully 
occupied  and  has  been  tilled  for  centuries ;  but 

207 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


although  she  undoubtedly  lacks  the  endless 
virgin  prairies  of  the  New  World,  she  has 
many  regions  still  lying  uncultivated,  landes 
and  poor  grazing  grounds,  to  the  extent  of 
many  millions  of  acres,  the  greater  part  of 
which  might  still  be  turned  to  account.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  some  small  section  is  reclaimed 
every  year,  though  not  more  than  enough  to 
balance  those  other  bits  of  land,  far  from  the 
centres  of  population,  which  are  annually  re- 
afforested  because  their  owners  can  find  no 
occupants  for  them,  and  can  devote  them  to  no 
more  profitable  use. 

The  return  to  the  land  will  have  the  effect 
of  gradually  driving  back  the  army  of  foreign 
labourers  which  has  been  invading  the  country 
in  ever-growing  numbers  for  the  last  twenty 
years,  and  which  swarms  annually  over  the 
dfyartements  du  Nord,  Centre,  and  Midi,  in 
response  to  the  regular  demand  for  manual 
labour.  Without  them,  as  things  stand,  certain 
branches  of  our  agriculture  would  come  to  an 
end,  and  they  prevented  our  agricultural  crisis 
from  ending  in  disaster. 

This  question  of  the  foreign  labourers  has 
been  thoroughly  gone  into  and  examined  for 
the  dtpartement  of  Seine-et-Marne,  by  two  dis- 
tinguished experts,  M.  Jules  B6nard  and  M. 

208 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

Brandin,  both  of  them  members  of  the  National 
Society  of  Agriculture.  Both  of  them  instituted 
a  minute  inquiry  into  the  subject,  the  former  in 
the  district  of  Meaux,  the  latter  in  that  of  Melun. 

These  investigations  followed  upon  a  great 
inquiry  instituted  by  the  Belgian  Government, 
which  established  the  fact  that  more  than 
45,000  Belgians  were  employed  on  agricultural 
work  in  France,  either  permanently  or  tempo- 
rarily. Besides  the  Belgians,  we  have  labourers 
from  Germany  and  Italy,  and  elsewhere.  In 
the  Meaux  district  alone,  M.  B6nard  found  that 
more  than  4000  foreigners  were  employed  tem- 
porarily every  year.  In  the  Melun  district, 
according  to  M.  Brandin's  estimate,  about  2500 
Belgians  and  Swiss  find  occupation — about  1200 
all  the  year  round;  the  rest  for  six  months  in 
the  year. 

On  the  day  when  French  workmen  decide 
to  take  the  place  of  these  foreigners,  a  long 
step  will  be  taken  towards  ameliorating  the 
condition  of  our  labour-market,  and  settling 
the  question  of  the  unemployed. 

If  it  be  objected  that,  generally  speaking, 
the  labour  in  question  is  intermittent  and  sup- 
plementary and  inadequate  as  a  livelihood,  we 
may  reply  that  this  is  not  less  the  case  for 
the  foreigners  who  undertake  it,  and  that  they 

209  p 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


have  other  occupations  at  home,  such  as  our  own 
people  might  also  find  for  themselves.  Most 
of  them,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  have  small  holdings 
in  their  own  country  which  help  to  keep  their 
families,  thus  realizing  the  ideal  we  dream  of 
for  the  French  labourer — the  life  of  a  peasant- 
farmer,  getting  all  he  can  out  of  his  own  land, 
and  adding  to  his  income  by  working  also  for 
others. 

There  is,  therefore,  no  doubt,  whatever  may 
be  said  to  the  contrary,  that  there  are  great 
openings  for  labour  in  our  agricultural  regions 
— openings  that  our  French  labourers  can  avail 
themselves  of  whenever  they  please,  whenever, 
that  means  to  say,  they  come  to  realize  the 
advantages  of  life  in  the  country. 

Moreover,  it  should  be  very  easy  to  extend 
very  widely  the  field  of  activities  for  French 
agricultural  labourers  by  developing  those 
branches  of  agriculture  which  would  give  them 
most  occupation,  such  as  cereals,  dairy  pro- 
duce, cheese,  vegetables,  fruit,  and  flowers. 
There  is  no  reason  why  France  should  not 
become  a  great  market-garden;  her  produce 
would  be  in  request  all  over  the  world,  ii 
only  she  knew  how  to  deal  with  her  clientele. 


210 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 


II 

But  as  we  have  said,  the  evolution  to  be 
accomplished  should  go  beyond  the  agricultural 
labourer ;  for  the  return  to  the  land  to  be 
realized  thoroughly  and  adequately,  the  move- 
ment should  embrace  a  portion  also  of  the 
bourgeoisie  and  those  small  traders  who  are  in 
so  unhappy  a  condition,  and  who  have  such  a 
blue  look-out  for  the  future. 

There  are  any  number  of  large  landowners 
who  would  be  only  too  happy  to  get  rid  of 
part  of  their  properties  in  small  allotments;  if 
they  are  not  cutting  up  their  properties  now, 
it  is  simply  because  they  cannot  find  buyers 
even  at  the  very  lowest  prices. 

But  we  are  not  restricted  now  to  our  own 
land  of  France.  We  also,  like  Great  Britain 
and  the  United  States,  have  immense  expanses 
waiting  to  be  exploited.  Thanks  to  the  wisdom 
and  foresight  of  Jules  Ferry  and  others  of  our 
statesmen,  we  have  at  our  disposal  a  vast 
empire  extending  the  world  over,  and  com- 
prising every  variety  of  agricultural  produce 
that  can  be  imagined. 

Until  now  we  have  done  little  more  than 
explore  this  new  world,  which  at  first  was  a 

211 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


matter  of  wonder  to  us,  and  almost  of  alarm. 
Now  that  we  are  beginning  to  know  it  better, 
we  regard  it  more  confidently.  Confidence  will 
soon  pass  to  enthusiasm,  and  we  shall  be  able 
to  take  in  the  wonderful  perspectives  of  the 
future  opening  out  before  us. 

Then,  at  last,  the  youth  of  the  country  will 
turn  its  eyes  towards  this  promised  land  which 
calls  them  to  a  larger  life— a  life  exacting  more 
intellect  and  energy,  and  offering  greater  profits 
and  rewards,  and  the  dull  daily  round  of  the 
existence  of  to-day  will  seem  wretched  by  com- 
parison. The  true  French  character,  instinct 
with  courage  and  daring  initiative,  will  re- 
awaken from  its  long  slumber,  and  shake  off 
the  dull  routine  that  has  been  masking  the 
genius  of  our  race. 

For  experience  has  spoken,  and  has  given 
striking  proofs  that  the  Frenchman  is  an  ex- 
cellent colonist,  provided  he  is  left  a  little  to 
himself  and  not  hampered  by  officialdom;  not 
only  is  he  full  of  initiative,  he  shows  himself 
also  very  practical  and  resourceful,  adapting 
himself  to  his  surroundings  and  making  them 
part  of  himself.  In  France  he  is  unrecognizable, 
because  he  is  under  an  extinguisher;  abroad 
he  is  a  different  man. 

When  he  decides  to  go  to  the  colonies,  he  will 
212 


The  Colonies.    Agrarian  Socialism 

turn  them  into  a  new  and  prosperous  France. 
But  how  are  we  to  get  him  to  make  up  his 
mind  to  go ;  how  are  we  to  overcome  his  apathy, 
his  blind  devotion  to  his  corner-seat  by  the 
family  fireside ;  how,  above  all,  are  we  to  reason 
with  that  deplorable  attitude  of  so  many  fathers 
and  mothers,  who  imagine  that  the  end  of  the 
world  has  come  when  they  see  their  son  embark 
upon  the  steamer? 

Assuredly,  the  revolution  will  not  be  accom- 
plished in  a  day.  The  settled  habits  and  customs 
of  a  race  are  not  to  be  changed  in  a  moment. 
However,  the  change  will  come  about  more 
speedily,  I  think,  than  is  generally  imagined. 


Ill 

To  make  the  coming  generation  see  things 
in  this  light,  all  we  have  to  do  is  to  change  our 
methods  of  educating  them.  We  have  seden- 
taries  enough,  we  want  men  of  action  now.  Let 
us  train  our  young  for  the  battle  of  life,  and 
equip  them  with  modern  arms.  Let  us  try  to 
give  to  the  mass  of  Frenchmen,  rich  or  poor, 
some  knowledge  of  foreign  languages  :  it  is  the 
best  implement  we  can  place  in  their  hands. 
With  that  acquisition,  a  man  cannot  starve.  Let 

213 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


us  add  to  that  a  thorough  study  of  geography- 
geography  made  attractive  as  it  is  by  modern 
methods.  Let  us  give  them  instead  of  empty 
novels,  too  often  corrupt,  records  of  those 
voyages  and  travels  which  call  out  a  man's 
noblest  aspirations  and  appeal  to  his  highest 
qualities. 

Thus  shall  we  give  a  new  character  to  a 
section  of  our  French  youth,  freeing  it  from 
the  atmosphere  in  which  it  has  been  sickly  and 
emasculate.  Large  views  will  begin  to  be  held, 
we  shall  grow  less  envious  and  petty.  Thus  the 
new  colonial  spirit  will  have  an  ameliorating 
effect  upon  political  and  social  habits.  The 
colonies  will  serve  as  a  safety-valve  for  those 
ardent  and  generous  natures  that  grow  em- 
bittered in  the  narrowness  of  our  present 
existence,  because  they  have  no  opening  for 
their  energies,  and  our  society  is  to  them  like 
a  mouldy  dungeon. 

The  transplanting  of  Frenchmen  in  the 
colonies  will  have  many  other  advantages 
which  must  be  placed  to  its  credit.  We  were 
deploring  a  while  ago  the  falling  off  in  the 
French  birth-rate — a  matter  for  so  much  real 
anxiety ;  while  all  the  other  nations  grow  and 
multiply,  we  remain  stationary  and  allow  the 
"big  battalions"  all  around  us  to  wax  bigger 

214 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

and  bigger.  If  we  continue  to  remain  stationary 
in  this  way,  we  run  the  risk  of  becoming  an  easy 
prey  for  neighbours  who  may  be  tempted  to 
aggrandize  themselves  at  our  expense.  It  may 
be  said  that  this  is  an  improbable  hypothesis, 
but  it  were  wise  to  be  on  our  guard. 

How  are  we  to  cope  with  this  danger,  how 
make  Frenchmen  realize  the  all-importance  of 
larger  families  ?  To  answer  this  question  we 
must  ask  another,  and  inquire  why  it  is  at 
present  they  are  so  little  prolific  ?  Now,  there 
is  no  doubt  that  the  chief  reason  is  the  French- 
man's excessive  regard  for  his  offspring,  his 
anxiety  for  its  welfare,  and  his  fears  lest  it 
should  not  be  adequately  provided  for. 

Provident  and  economical,  the  Frenchman 
looks  ahead,  calculating  what  provision  he  can 
make  for  his  children  and  considering  what 
opening  he  can  find  for  them.  The  more 
crowded  the  professions  become,  the  more 
difficult  it  grows  to  earn  a  livelihood,  the 
more  nervous  he  becomes.  The  advent  of 
each  child  grows  to  be  a  source  of  trouble  and 
anxiety  instead  of  joy.  The  result  is  that  he 
refrains  from  having  many  children. 

How  different  would  be  his  whole  attitude 
if  he  could  say  to  himself,  "  The  world  is  wide, 
and  there  is  room  for  every  one  with  brain  and 

215 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


muscle—that  in  our  colonies  there  will  always 
be  a  sure  refuge  for  Frenchmen  in  need  of  one, 
and  posts  better  than  any  that  could  be  hoped 
for  here  at  home."  The  day  when  this  notion 
will  have  penetrated  into  the  heads  of  our 
people,  they  will  cease  to  regard  children  as 
such  serious  burdens  and  will  adopt  the  view 
of  the  small  farmer,  who  is  dependent  on  his 
family  for  manual  labour,  and  welcomes  each 
new  child  as  a  gift  from  God. 

The  example  our  colonies  have  set  us  in  this 
matter  already  should  fire  us  with  the  spirit  of 
emulation.  It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  the 
French  race  becomes  very  prolific  as  soon  as  it 
is  transplanted  in  new  countries,  where  it  feels 
that  it  has  breathing-space.  Have  we  not  seen 
in  Canada  a  race  of  three  million  Frenchmen 
spring  from  a  root  of  only  sixty  thousand  ? 

In  Algeria  and  Tunis,  in  the  same  way,  the 
birth-rate,  which  in  France  is  29  per  1000, 
rises  to  as  much  as  36  per  1000 — as  high  as  in 
Germany,  higher  than  in  England.  It  is  note- 
worthy, too,  that  in  France  the  largest  families 
are  to  be  found  in  those  parts  which  send  out 
most  emigrants — Brittany,  for  instance,  and  the 
Basque  country,  where  the  births  but  fill  the 
gaps  caused  by  the  emigration. 

But  if  these  aspirations  are  to  bear  fruit,  we 
216 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

must  see  to  it  that  we  turn  our  colonies  to  the 
fullest  account,  so  organizing  the  administration 
of  them  as  to  ensure  our  colonists  openings 
that  shall  prove  both  lucrative  and  durable. 
We  have  seen  too  many  colonists  return  to 
France  downcast  and  disillusioned,  and  more 
penniless  than  when  they  started.  Their  own 
fault,  it  may  be  said;  they  went  out  under 
unfavourable  conditions,  without  making  any 
preparations,  without  any  special  qualifications 
and  without  capital.  Possibly,  but  that  is  just 
what  must  be  prevented  in  future,  and  the  way 
to  prevent  it  is  simply  to  organize  our  coloniza- 
tion instead  of  leaving  it  to  chance.  We  ought 
long  ago  to  have  established  powerful  colonizing 
agencies  for  this  purpose. 


IV 

The  Government  should  take  in  hand  itself 
the  establishment  of  these  agencies.  It  has  a 
thousand  and  one  means  at  its  disposal  for 
turning  capital  into  the  direction  of  the  colonies, 
and  this  would  be  good  business,  as  well  as  a 
patriotic  proceeding :  let  the  Government  regard 
it  as  their  duty,  dictated  by  the  urgent  needs  of 
our  splendid  colonies,  whose  very  existence  and 

217 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


entire  future  is  at  stake.  How  are  we  to  explain 
the  fact  that  Algeria  attracts  so  few  Frenchmen, 
while  it  exercises  so  powerful  a  fascination  upon 
foreigners  ? 

M.  Jonnart,  who  knows  Algeria  through  and 
through  and  has  the  colony's  interests  at  heart, 
looks  forward  with  anxiety  to  the  future;  he 
notes  the  alarming  fact  that  while  the  solid  mass 
of  the  native  population  remains  unchanged 
and  unchangeable,  the  foreign  flood  is  swelling 
steadily  and  the  French  element  makes  little  or 
no  advance ;  and  he  fears  the  advent  of  a  day 
when  we  shall  be  submerged,  and  France  shall 
lose  the  precious  possession  it  took  her  a 
century  to  win. 

However,  he  has  set  himself  to  the  task 
of  rendering  such  an  eventuality  impossible, 
setting  about  it  in  a  thoroughly  practical  spirit 
and  with  an  apostolic  zeal  which  tends  to  inspire 
universal  confidence.  He  realizes  that  speeches 
and  lectures  and  fair  promises  are  not  enough 
to  induce  large  masses  of  his  countrymen  to 
cross  the  Mediterranean  and  seek  their  fortune 
in  Algeria.  To  induce  them  to  do  so,  they  must 
be  offered  some  sort  of  guarantee  of  success. 
To  this  end  our  Governor-General  has  drawn 
up  a  complete  plan  of  colonization,  carefully 
thought  out,  and  available  for  study  by  any  one 

218 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

who  cares  to  examine  it  in  detail.  It  has  been 
published  under  the  title  of  the  "  Colonization  of 
Algeria."  From  its  pages  you  may  learn  where 
you  had  better  pitch  your  tent  or  build  your 
house.  It  supplies  the  most  detailed  informa- 
tion as  to  the  locality  of  the  principal  centres, 
their  climate,  height  above  the  level  of  the  sea, 
the  number  and  extent  of  the  available  grants 
of  land,  free  or  purchaseable,  as  to  the  kind  of 
produce  that  can  be  carried  on  and  as  to  the 
plant  or  implements  required  for  them,  as  to  the 
trades  which  thrive  there,  as  to  the  population, 
methods  of  transport,  etc.,  etc.  Every  centre 
has  its  special  chart,  from  which  an  idea  can  be 
got  of  the  topography  of  the  region.  Finally, 
it  announces  that  lands  conceded  to  new 
colonists  are  exempt  from  taxation  for  ten 
years,  that  departmental  agricultural  experts 
will  be  at  hand  to  give  them  useful  hints  and 
information,  and  that  on  arriving  they  may 
obtain  help  and  advice  from  the  adminstra- 
tion  of  the  commune.  This  is  one  of  the  best 
provisions  of  all.  The  paternal  guardianship  to 
be  exercised  by  the  administration  will  do  more 
to  reassure  them  than  all  the  rest. 

M.  Jonnart  is  at  pains,  moreover,  to  save 
them  from  injurious  delusions  and  to  warn  them 
of  the  conditions  essential  to  success.  He 

219 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


insists  upon  the  need  of  a  practical  acquaintance 
with  agriculture  and  of  the  possession  of  some 
small  means — 5000  francs  at  least.  He  advises 
would-be  colonists  to  begin  by  educating  them- 
selves for  their  new  career  by  taking  service 
for  the  first  twelve  months  with  some  one  already 
settled  in  the  colony  on  a  large  scale,  so  as 
to  familiarize  themselves  with  the  methods  in 
vogue. 

In  this  way  it  is  that  M.  Jonnart  justifies 
by  chapter  and  verse  the  assertion  he  places 
at  the  beginning  of  his  book,  and  which  sums 
up  its  contents:  "Algeria,"  he  says,  "offers 
special  advantages  to  our  home  agriculturists, 
at  a  loss  for  adequate  holdings.  For  the  same 
price,  and  without  extra  trouble,  they  can  secure 
in  Algeria  much  larger  properties,  destined  in 
all  probability  to  become  gradually  more  valuable 
and  bringing  in,  if  competently  managed,  larger 


revenues." 


We  feel  justified  now  in  affirming,  after  this 
long  and  careful  inquiry  into  the  facts,  that  the 
return  to  the  land  is  in  accordance  with  the 
nature  of  things,  and  in  the  interest  of  all 
classes  of  the  community,  and  also  of  the 

22C 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

Government,  for  its  tendency  is  to  maintain  the 
equilibrium  of  the  country,  both  socially  and 
politically;  it  serves  to  protect  us  from  the 
troubles  which  result  from  the  too  exclusive 
development  of  manufacture. 

There  is,  however,  another  obstacle  in  its 
way,  a  new  obstacle  to  which  a  passing  reference 
has  been  already  made,  but  to  which  we  must 
now  return  — I  refer  to  the  movement  of 
Agrarian  Socialism,  which  has  assumed  such 
serious  proportions  of  late,  and  has  begun  to 
alarm  all  those  whose  business  it  is  to  look 
ahead. 

We  are  obliged  to  admit  that  the  appre- 
hensions aroused  are  not  without  ground,  and 
that  this  movement,  which  has  now  been  in 
progress  in  France  for  some  years,  would  be 
calculated  to  frustrate  all  efforts  to  bring  capital 
and  labour  back  to  the  land,  if  it  were  to  maintain 
its  present  advance. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  under  the  influence 
of  the  revolutionary  party  a  subterranean  work 
is  now  in  progress  which  tends  to  undermine 
the  rights  of  property  and  to  lead  the  rural 
masses,  without  their  suspecting  it,  towards  the 
substitution  of  collective  property  for  private 
property.  The  leaders  of  the  party,  who  for 
a  long  time  had  restricted  their  energies  to  the 

221 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


towns,  where  they  found  a  soil  better  fitted  for 
their  purpose  and  an  army  easier  to  mobilize, 
have  at  last  realized  that  all  their  efforts 
shattered  themselves  against  the  wall  of  granite 
presented  by  the  democracy  of  the  country 
districts,  lovers  of  order  more  than  of  liberty. 
This  fact  once  noted,  they  began  at  once  to 
lay  siege,  with  rare  patience  and  cunning 
strategy,  to  this  rural  stronghold.  Their  plan, 
now  well  known,  has  been  to  seize  hold  of  the 
peasant  by  his  strongest  feelings,  and  to  make 
use  of  his  love  for  the  land  to  turn  him  against 
the  present  order  of  things.  These  new-style 
Socialists  profess  to  have  the  greatest  respect 
for  property,  more  respect  than  the  State,  which 
apportions  the  soil  among  a  certain  number  of 
privileged  individuals  instead  of  bestowing  it 
generously  upon  all  those  who  have  arms  to 
labour  upon  it  and  turn  it  to  account ;  they 
declare  that  it  is  not  enough  to  make  property 
accessible  to  all — that  it  must  belong  to  all — that 
every  Frenchman  who  so  wishes  may  own  his 
share  of  the  land. 

Starting  from  this  point,  he  has  a  different 
tale  to  tell  and  different  promises  to  hold  out 
to  each  of  the  various  classes  of  agriculturists. 
To  the  farmer,  he  exclaims  :  "  Is  it  not  iniquitous 
that  you  should  sweat  and  toil  for  the  benefit 

222 


The  Colonies.    Agrarian  Socialism 

of  a  landlord  who  merely  condescends  to^  be 
born  so  as  to  enjoy  the  right  of  living  upon  you 
and  spending  the  fruits  of  your  labour  upon 
his  luxurious  comforts  and  idle  pleasures?" 
What  is  the  soil  in  itself? — nothing,  absolutely 
nothing,  until  man's  labour  turns  it  to  account. 
Labour,  then,  is  everything,  and  alone  has  a 
right  to  reward.  The  rights  of  property,  if  such 
there  be,  belong  to  him  who  tills  the  soil,  and 
the  triumph  of  Socialism  will  mean  nothing  else 
than  the  triumph  of  the  farmer  placed  by  law 
in  possession  of  the  land. 

After  the  farmer,  the'  mttayer.  Here  he  is 
on  more  difficult  ground,  and  it  was  long 
believed  that  this  essentially  democratic  institu- 
tion would  victoriously  withstand  the  assaults 
of  the  revolutionary  propaganda ;  it  is,  in  fact, 
based  upon  an  intimate  co-operation  of  capital 
and  labour,  on  that  very  participation  of  labour 
in  the  profits  of  capital  which  the  Socialists 
themselves  used  to  put  forward  as  the  most 
practical  solution  of  the  social  problem.  Despite 
the  anathemas  heaped  upon  mttayage  by  certain 
economists,  this  system  has  worked  out  as  one 
of  the  best  methods  of  reconciling  all  interests. 
Its  success  during  the  agricultural  crisis  was 
so  great  that  the  majority  of  foreign  nations 
now  consider  it  as  a  model  to  be  imitated 

223 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


Its  merits,  however,  are  now  being  questioned 
by  the  Collectivist  propagandists,  who  are 
tackling  the  mttayers  even  more  strenuously 
than  they  tackled  the  farmers.  In  order  to  get 
hold  of  him  they  make  use  of  an  argument  which 
is  easily  enough  grasped  by  simple  minds  with 
but  ]a  rudimentary  notion  of  logic ;  they  go  first 
for  the  old-established  metayers,  who  have  been 
at  work  on  their  particular  holding,  fathers  and 
sons,  for  generations  back,  and  they  say :  How 
can  you  be  content  to  be  merely  a  profit-sharer 
in  a  work  which  is  in  reality  your  own,  no 
one's  but  yours  ?  This  soil  which  you  cultivate 
is  what  you  and  your  ancestors  have  made  it; 
you  have  put  your  brain  and  muscle  into  it,  and 
it  is  to  you  alone  it  should  belong.  As  for  your 
landlord,  he  and  his  have  been  paid  for  their 
interest  in  the  land  long  since,  and  you  owe 
him  nothing  more ;  we  shall  be  giving  you  no 
more  than  your  just  rights  when  we  put  you 
in  his  place,  when  the  day  of  revolution  arrives, 
and  if  you  wish  it  that  day  may  be  to-morrow. 

A  conquest  even  more  difficult  than  that  of 
the  mftayer  is  that  of  these  small  landowners, 
who  have  always  been  regarded  as  the  strongest 
rampart  of  the  rights  of  property,  and  who 
have  always  been  steadfastly  opposed  to  revo- 
lutionary doctrines;  they  cling  passionately  to 

224 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

their  small  slips  of  territory,  and  they  have 
always  held  the  Socialists  in  horror.  The  latter, 
however,  have  not  been  afraid  to  storm  this 
strong  barricade.  As  the  small  landowner  has 
generally  farmed  his  own  land,  there  is  not 
much  difficulty  in  making  him  accept  the  prin- 
ciple that  the  soil  belongs  to  him  who  cultivates 
it.  This  principle  advanced  successfully,  they 
proceed  to  demonstrate  its  logical  consequences 
in  a  way  that  dazzles  and  fascinates  their  victim's 
envious  eyes  :  they  point  to  the  beautiful  vast 
domains  stretching  out  their  opulence  all  round 
him,  and  furnishing  forth  luxury  for  the  rich 
landlords  residing  in  the  cities.  As  these  idlers 
will  not  cultivate  their  lands  themselves,  let 
them  cede  them  to  men  who  could  and  would. 

The  voice  of  the  serpent  evokes  feelings  of 
envy,  and  a  number  of  men  who  would  never 
dream  of  abstracting  a  sou  from  their  neigh- 
bour's pocket,  find  themselves  turning  their  eyes 
greedily  towards  the  prey  marked  down  for 
them,  and  already  capturing  it  in  thought. 

Thus  it  is  that  Agrarian  Socialism  is  being 
surreptitiously  introduced  into  our  rural  dis- 
tricts, and  what  is  most  noteworthy  in  the 
matter  is  the  fact  that  it  began  in  the  strata 
which  seemed  most  calculated  to  offer  it  most 
resistance.  The  agricultural  labourers  have  been 

225  Q 


RS1TY 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


left  on  one  side  contemptuously.  These  tactics 
are  cleverer  than  they  may  seem.  The  Socialist 
leaders  know  that  when  they  have  carried  the 
strong  positions,  they  will  have  no  difficulty 
with  the  rest.  The  workmen  will  fall  readily 
enough  into  their  hands. 

For  this  they  had  only  to  await  the  right 
occasion,  which  was  sure  to  come  in  time. 
The  crisis  in  the  vine-culture  supplied  it.  The 
bad  season  in  the  Midi  plunged  the  unfortunate 
cultivators  into  such  distress  that  many  of  them 
had  to  reduce  the  amount  of  labour  they  em- 
ployed, or  else  the  price  paid  for  it.  They  did 
not  do  this  willingly  but  under  the  stress  of 
absolute  necessity. 

This  was  the  moment  chosen  by  the  revolu- 
tionaries of  1'Herault,  1'Aude  and  other  departe- 
ments  to  launch  out,  and  they  seized  it  with 
an  ardour  easy  to  comprehend;  on  the  word 
of  command,  issued  by  the  Labour  Bureau  at 
Montpellier,  all  the  agricultural  labourers  in  those 
regions  in  which  discontent  had  become  accen- 
tuated were  at  once  enrolled  and  organized  for 
the  fight.  They  were  provided  with  leaders 
from  outside,  unconcerned  with  their  interests, 
more  eager  for  a  struggle  than  for  a  settlement, 
and  these  had  formulated  claims  on  their  behalf 
which  were  of  a  prohibitive  character.  Not 

226 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

content  with  stipulating  for  the  re-establish- 
ment of  their  old  wages,  an  increase  was  de- 
manded, accompanied  by  threats  of  pillage 
against  those  who  should  refuse  to  come  to 
terms.  Simultaneously,  the  workers'  eyes  were 
dazzled  with  promises  of  such  a  division  of  the 
land  as  would  end  all  their  troubles. 

The  proprietors,  half  ruined  by  the  crisis, 
being  unable  to  submit  to  such  conditions,  the 
revolutionary  party  set  about  terrorizing  them, 
which  was  easy  enough.  The  labourers  were 
organized  into  flying  columns,  as  it  were,  moving 
about  from  one  commune  to  another,  sowing 
terror  wherever  they  went,  and  calling  up 
visions  of  a  new  Jacquerie.  Needless  to  say, 
the  really  good  labourers  who  were  tempted 
to  resist,  realizing  the  wrong  that  was  being 
done  them,  were  the  first  to  be  set  upon  and 
maltreated. 

That  is  what  we  have  come  to  in  France 
to-day,  and  this  outline  sketch  serves  to  show 
what  progress  Agrarian  Socialism  has  made 
here  during  the  few  years  that  have  elapsed 
since  the  advent  to  power  of  the  revolutionary 
party;  it  is  the  all-powerful  influence  of  this 
party  that,  by  according  impunity  to  the  agents 
of  disorder,  and  by  making  the  organizers  of 
strikes  collaborators  with  the  Government, 

227 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


have  rendered   powerless  the  defenders  of  the 
law. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  if  such  a  state 
of  things  were  to  exist  for  long,  the  consequences 
would  be  disastrous. 

To  begin  with,  it  would  be  a  new  cause  of 
ruin,  and  ruin  irreparable,  for  agriculture;  the 
day  when  the  rights  of  property  are  seriously 
shaken,  every  one  will  fight  shy  of  it.  The 
security,  which  was  its  chief  attraction,  having 
gone  from  it,  no  one  will  want  to  have  anything 
more  to  do  with  it.  And  this  will  be  only 
natural,  for  there  are  no  investments  more 
risky  than  those  ventured  in  the  soil.  The  land 
is  a  devouring  abyss  for  capital,  and  every  one 
except  the  Socialists  realizes]  the  fact ;  if  we 
could  add  up  all  the  sums  that  have  been 
swallowed  up  in  French  soil  in  the  effort  to 
make  of  it  what  it  now  is — all  the  endless  cost 
of  reclaiming  and  improving  and  developing—- 
we should  be  astonished  by  the  immensity  of 
the  figure,  and  if  we  compared  it  with  the 
revenue  now  drawn  by  the  landowners  of  to- 
day, we  should  be  obliged  to  admit  that  there 
is  no  form  of  property  so  unremunerative,  or  the 
right  to  which  is  so  well-founded. 

Yet  this  it  is  that  the  revolutionary  party 
wishes  to  give  away  for  nothing  to  the  cultivators 

228 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

of  the  soil.  It  will  be  sheer  confiscation, 
pure  and  simple,  that  is  clearly  understood: 
neither  the  word  nor  the  thing  gives  our  re- 
formers any  cause  for  alarm.  But  have  they 
considered  what  will  ensue  on  the  morrow  of 
this  great  liquidation?  Have  they  asked  them- 
selves what  will  happen  when  the  new  pro- 
prietors want  to  dispose  of  the  wealth  of  acres 
in  their  possession?  The  time  will  inevitably 
come  when  they  will  ask  themselves  what  their 
land  is  worth.  A  little  reflection  will  tell  them 
that  they  are  not  proprietors  in  any  real  sense 
of  the  word,  but  only  occupants  on  a  precarious 
tenure  at  the  will  and  under  the  direction  of 
the  State. 

They  will  be  forced  to  look  forward  to  a 
day  when  they  will  be  unable  to  go'  on  culti- 
vating their  land,  and  when  it  will  pass  back 
to  the  State  out  of  their  hands ;  ill-health  or 
other  causes  may  lead  to  this.  After  their 
death,  the  uncertainty  will  become  worse  still ; 
if  they  leave  no  children,  all  is  over  and  done 
with,  and  the  fruits  of  all  their  labour  will  fall 
into  the  great  universal  reservoir  and  pass  into 
alien  hands. 

In  such  a  situation  it  is  easy  enough  to 
foresee  the  line  that  will  be  taken  by  the 
collectivist  landowner.  He  will  live  from 

229 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


day  to  day  in  hand-to-mouth  fashion,  much 
like  primitive  man,  doing  what  he  must  for 
his  own  personal  needs  and  profits,  but  ab- 
staining from  improvements  which  do  not  yield 
immediate  results. 

The  obvious  outcome"  of  it  all  will  be  a 
speedily  increasing  impoverishment  of  the  soil, 
the  decrease  of  capital  invested  in  agriculture, 
and  a  return  to  pastoral  conditions  with  their 
attendant  poverty  and  distress.  So  much  for 
the  country.  But  will  the  individual  be  any 
better  off,  any  more  satisfied  with  his  lot? 
Shall  we  see  the  birth  of  an  enthusiasm  for 
the  land,  a  rush  for  its  possession?  If  this 
were  to  be  hoped  for,  there  would  be  some 
kind  of  consolation  in  the  thought,  but  we  are 
absolutely  convinced  that  the  eviction  of  the 
old  proprietors  will  be  the  signal  for  a  general 
stampede  of  the  agricultural  population. 

Doubtless,  if  the  holdings  were  handed  over 
without  restriction,  once  and  for  all,  to  destitute 
members  of  the  proletariat,  thus  making  them 
as  much  bond  fide  proprietors  as  are  the  actual 
owners,  applicants  would  not  be  wanting,  and 
all  hands  would  be  stretched  out  towards  the 
governmental  providence  wrhich  thus  caused 
heavenly  manna  to  fall  down  from  the  skies 
upon  its  chosen  ones.  There  would  be  difficulty, 

230 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

it  is  true,  in  satisfying  everybody,  and  those 
whom  it  would  be  necessary  to  eliminate  would 
soon  develop  into  an  army  of  malcontents, 
who,  in  their  turn,  would  set  to  work  at  over- 
turning the  new  order  of  things.  A  fresh 
revolution  would  be  clamoured  for,  and  would 
soon  have  to  be  forthcoming.  A  reassuring 
prospect ! 

But,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Collectivist 
State  would  not  propose  to  carry  their  gene- 
rosity so  far;  it  would  propose  to  reserve 
entire  control  over  the  so-called  proprietors 
of  its  own  making.  In  short,  as  I  have  said 
already,  they  would  not  be  in  any  real  sense 
proprietors  at  all ;  they  would  not  be  able  to 
sell  or  let  their  land— it  is  doubtful  even  whether 
they  could  bequeath  it  to  their  children. 

Under  such  conditions  one  asks  one's  self 
what  temptations  there  will  be  in  this  hybrid 
system  for  the  would-be  agriculturist.  French- 
men are  said  to  be  volatile,  which  is  doubtless 
a  calumny ;  but  if  they  are  not  volatile,  at  least 
they  love  their  liberty  and  are  not  easily  induced 
to  forego  it.  Now,  what  the  Collectivists  have 
to  offer  the  French  agriculturist  is  nothing 
less  than  a  disguised  form  of  servitude :  he 
would  become  at  once  the  slave  of  the  soil  and 
of  the  Government.  Once  he  has  accepted  this 

231 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


gift  from  the  State,  he  will  be  bound  to  his 
holding  and  unable  to  relinquish  it  until  his 
master  consents  to  allot  him  another.  He  will 
be  condemned  all  his  life  to  go  round  and  round 
in  the  same  circle,  from  which  there  will  be 
no  egress;  his  land,  which  he  cannot  sell  or 
let  or  give  away,  will  become  to  him  a  veri- 
table shirt  of  Nessus  which  he  is  forbidden  to 
take  off. 

Such  is  the  solution  put  forward  by  our 
Collectivists  for  our  problem,  such  the  ground- 
work upon  which  they  propose  to  establish  the 
happiness  of  mankind.  If  the  application  of 
it  were  not  so  costly  and  were  not  putting  back 
the  clock  of  real  progress  more  than  half  a 
century,  we  should  be  almost  tempted  to  wish 
to  see  the  experiment  actually  made.  It  would 
not  be  of  long  duration,  if  we  may  judge  by 
what  we  know  of  the  French  workman's  mind. 
We  have  before  our  eyes  an  institution  which 
offers  a  very  suggestive  comparison — that  of 
the  workmen's  cottages.  This,  when  its  methods 
are  fully  understood,  is  destined  to  transform 
the  artisan's  existence  and  to  secure  his  well- 
being  in  the  bosom  of  his  family ;  in  the  earlier 
stages  of  the  organization,  the  artisan  only 
became  owner  of  his  house  when  he  had  paid 
as  rent  a  sum  equivalent  to  the  interest  upon 

232 


The  Colonies.    Agrarian  Socialism 

the  capital  represented;  until  then  he  was  not 
free  to  sell  it. 

This  restriction  evoked  the  artisan's  distrust 
and  frightened  him  away.  He  saw  in  it  the 
veiled  intention  of  tying  him  down  to  his  work 
and  of  preventing  him  from  changing  his  resi- 
dence, or  even  his  method  of  livelihood,  at  will ; 
he  could  not  get  over  the  fact  that  he  could 
not  sell,  and  the  success  of  the  enterprise 
seemed  seriously  endangered. 

In  order  to  overcome  this  feeling,  the  wise 
philanthropists'  who  had  the  matter  in  hand  did 
not  hesitate  to  modify  their  regulations  upon  this 
essential  point ;  they  proposed  to  give  the  work- 
man title-deeds  to  his  house  which  he  could  cede, 
if  he  wished,  to  another,  on  condition  that  the 
latter  should  continue  to  pay  the  stipulated  rent 
until  the  interest  on  the  capital  had  been  defrayed. 

If  the  workman  clings  thus  to  his  indepen- 
dence, if  they  will  only  consent  to  become  pro- 
prietors subject  to  possessing  the  right  to  sell 
in  the  case  of  a  house  which  is  given  them  for 
next  to  nothing,  who  will  believe  that  the 
peasant  proprietor  will  be  less  tenacious  and 
exacting?  The  poor  specimens  who  would 
accept  the  grant  of  land  offered  them  upon  such 
a  tenure  as  is  contemplated  would  not  be 
genuine  agriculturists. 

233 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


It  is  all-important  that  our  rural  classes 
should  have  their  eyes  opened  to  the  real  value 
of  the  Collectivists'  promises.  The  best  way 
to  achieve  this  is  by  forcing  these  gentlemen 
to  explain  clearly  how  their  doctrines  are  to  be 
applied.  We  must  not  let  them  take  refuge  in 
vague  formulas,  and  fine-sounding  rhetorical 
generalizations — we  must  make  them  show  us 
the  works  of  their  reforming  machine  and  set 
them  going  for  us  so  that  we  can  study  them 
in  their  smallest  details.  Thus  pressed,  they 
will  show  themselves  in  their  true  light,  and 
their  dupes  will  see  through  their  game. 

It  is  impossible  that  the  three  million  pro- 
prietors who  represent  half  our  agricultural 
population  would  not  then  see  already  the 
danger  that  is  threatening  them,  and  would 
not  rise  as  one  man  to  bar  the  road  against  the 
false  prophets  who  would  lead  them  astray. 
They  will  see  that  on  the  day  when  the  revo- 
lutionary party  triumphed,  their  rights  to  their 
property  would  go.  It  would  be  the  same  for 
all,  big  and  little.  When  the  large  properties 
had  been  confiscated,  it  would  be  very  ingenuous 
to  suppose  that  the  small  ones  would  be 
immune.  Even  if  the  State  wished  to  leave 
them  alone,  it  could  not ;  those  who  had  not 
had  their  share  of  loot,  and  who  would  always 

234 


The  Colonies*    Agrarian  Socialism 

be  the  greater  number,  would  know  how  to 
force  it  to  evict  a  new  batch  of  owners  and  to 
give  them  their  places  at  the  banquet.  Let 
the  small  proprietors  reflect  well  over  it  all. 
Their  very  existence  is  at  stake. 

But  in  order  to  cope  successfully  with 
Socialism,  as  I  have  said,  it  is  not  enough  to 
expose  its  fallacies  and  dangers;  we  must,  at 
the  same  time,  disarm  the  enemies  of  Society 
by  planning  out  measures  calculated  to  amelio- 
rate the  condition  of  our  poor  and  to  solve  the 
problem  set  before  us. 

In  the  chapter  on  "  State  Aid  "  we  have  set 
forth  some  of  the  principal  measures  that  are 
called  for,  but  the  most  important  of  all,  that 
which  is  really  essential,  is  the  establishment 
all  over  the  country  of  the  Bien  de  Famille,  which 
will  solve  the  problem  of  property  in  a  way 
which  will  be  at  once  the  most  liberal  and  the 
most  practical.  There  is  no  better  method 
of  combating  the  Collectivists'  schemes  than 
by  confronting  collective  property  with  per- 
sonal property  and  making  personal  property 
accessible  to  all. 

When  this  principle  has  received  the  sanction 
of  the  Government,  it  will  be  the  duty  of  all 
interested  in  agriculture  to  help  to  put  it  into 
practice.  It  will  not  do  to  rely  solely  upon  the 

235 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


readiness  of  the  labourer  to  fall  in  with  it ;  he 
must  be  educated  up  to  it  and  helped  to  profit 
by  it.  This  should  be  the  work  of  the  syndi- 
cates, the  natural  supports  of  the  agricultural 
world.  It  will  be  for  them  to  create  associa- 
tions, after  the  fashion  of  those  already  in  exist- 
ence for  the  construction  of  artisans'  dwellings, 
which  will  enable  the  would-be  proprietors  to 
make  all  the  necessary  arrangements  that  are 
involved. 

The  syndicates  undertaking  this  could 
achieve  another  service  to  the  cause  of  progress, 
which  would  contribute  in  large  measure  to 
the  social  well-being,  by  enlisting  the  workers 
in  agricultural  associations  of  another  order, 
which  would  be  empowered  to  serve  as  arbiters 
in  cases  of  dispute. 

There  is  yet  one  other  thing  to  be  done  in  the 
interests  of  the  land. 

We  have  spoken  already  of  the  harm  that 
has  been  done  by  the  absenteeism  of  the  bour- 
geois landowners.  As  long  as  personal  relations 
existed  between  the  landowners,  the  farmers 
and  the  labourers,  as  long  as  they  lived  the 
same  life,  and  met  sometimes  at  table,  and  had 
opportunities  of  discussing  their  affairs  amicably 
together,  they  all  worked  together  for  their 
common  good  in  "happy  family"  fashion. 

236 


The  Colonies.    Agrarian  Socialism 

But  when  the  bourgeois  moved  away,  often 
leaving  behind  him  as  his  representative  a  hard 
and  tactless  agent,  seldom  returning  himself, 
unless  to  shut  himself  up  in  his  villa  or  chateau, 
and  condescending  to  take  no  interest  in  his 
neighbours  and  their  affairs,  a  great  change 
came  about.  The  peasant  began  to  look  upon 
him  askance.  Then  it  was  that  the  revolutionary 
party  found  its  opportunity  of  beginning  its 
propaganda.  There  were  social  gatherings  at 
which  their  emissaries  hob-nobbed  with  their 
guileless  dupes  and,  exploiting  for  all  it  was 
worth  the  haughty  indifference  of  the  absentee 
landlord,  succeeded  in  winning  innumerable 
converts  to  their  ideas.  And  gradually  the 
bourgeoisie,  through  its  own  fault,  lost  all  its 
influence  and  popularity. 

Why  did  it  not  follow  the  example  of  the 
English  aristocracy,  which,  by  dint  of  energy, 
generosity,  and  civic  devotion,  has  maintained 
its  influence  over  the  British  democracy  ?  The 
peers  in  England  make  good  their  title  to  all 
the  great  privileges  they  still  enjoy  by  their 
public  spirit  and  the  practical  part  they  take 
in  the  affairs  of  the  country ;  they  remain 
in  such  close  touch  with  the  working-classes 
that  they  have  retained  their  position  of 
authority  in  the  eyes  of  the  nation,  and  their 

237 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


antecedents  are  forgotten  in  gratitude  for  their 
good  deeds. 

It  is  still  possible  for  the  French  bourgeoisie 
to  play  a  similar  part  in  our  national  life.  It 
has  but  to  free  itself  from  the  spell  of  cities 
and  to  seek  to  love  and  understand  the  country 
once  again.  It  has  but  to  take  the  first  step 
for  its  enemies  of  to-day  to  become  its  friends 
of  to-morrow. 


VI 

We  may  now  sum  up,  and  we  hope  the 
reader  will  sum  up  with  us.  We  firmly  believe 
that  this  last  cloud  which  we  have  observed 
upon  the  horizon  of  the  world  of  agriculture, 
and  which  threatened  to  burst  into  a  storm, 
ravaging  everything  and  destroying  all  hopes 
for  the  future,  will  pass  away  like  the  others, 
and  that  the  cultivation  of  the  soil  of  France 
will  be  carried  on  beneath  a  radiant  sky.  The 
spirit  of  the  French  peasant  contains  treasures 
of  good  sense  and  right  thinking,  which  will 
strengthen  it  against  the  sophisms  of  the  revolu- 
tionary school  and  save  it  from  the  perilous 
adventures  into  which  Socialism  would  tempt  it. 

Agriculture,  then,  is  not  really  in  danger, 
238 


The  Colonies.    Agrarian  Socialism 

and  may  work  out  its  destiny  in  peace.  The 
return  to  the  land  will  not  be  brought  about 
by  violent  and  empirical  methods,  but  scientifi- 
cally, and  by  men  of  good  will  working  in  con- 
cord and  unity  for  the  ordering  of  the  products 
of  the  nation  in  harmony  and  proportion. 

The  days  are  past  in  which  there  was  no 
need  for  thus  keeping  things  under  control — the 
days  when  there  was  a  sort  of  water-tight  parti- 
tion between  all  the  nations.  Nowadays,  when 
all  the  markets  of  the  world  are  interwoven 
and  interdependent,  their  movements  are  much 
more  complex ;  the  least  mishap  in  a  remote 
corner  of  the  globe  is  felt  right  through  to  the 
other  side.  It  is  essential  that  all  the  cogs  of 
the  wheel  of  commerce  should  fit  into  each  other 
if  it  is  not  to  break  down. 

To  ameliorate  the  lot  of  our  working-classes 
and  ward  off  the  dangers  that  are  impending, 
there  is,  I  repeat  once  more,  but  one  thing  to 
do  :  to  provide  them  with  new  fields  of  labour 
by  sending  them  back  to  the  land.  To  advocate 
this  solution  of  the  problem  before  us  has  been 
the  purpose  of  my  book,  which  may  be  said 
to  be  merely  an  expansion  of  a  profound  thought 
uttered  long  ago  by  a  Chinese  philosopher — a 
thought  which  should  be  inscribed  upon  the 
walls  of  our  schools  in  letters  of  gold — 

239 


The  Return  to  the  Land 


"  The  well-being  of  a  people  is  like  a  tree : 
agriculture  is  its  root,  manufacture  and  com- 
merce are  its  branches  and  its  leaves  ;  if  the  root 
is]  injured,  the  leaves  fall,  the  branches  break 
away,  and  the  tree  dies." 


THE  END 


FEINTED  BY   WILLIAM  CLOWES  AND  SONS,   LIMITED,   LONDON  AND  BECCLES. 


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